fire in the water
by TheWritingMermaid
Summary: A girl is born within a bubble, being raised by one of the deadliest creatures on the planet. She grows with a kind and selfless heart. Once that bubble pops, will she be able to endure both the bright light and the never-ending darkness of the world she was shielded from since she was born with courage, or will her heart shatter?
1. Prologue

**Greetings, fellow readers! I have returned with my former story and have revamped it after much struggle and lack of inspiration, but I can actually say I am happy with the changes I have made, and I hope you guys also enjoy the story. I also hope you can all accompany me on this journey once more!**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing from The Vampire Diaries and claim no ownership over anything pertaining to it. I only own my characters.**

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_prologue_

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_Vampires._

_Werewolves._

_And witches._

_They're the creatures of legends, myths filled with magic and mystery. They were infamous entities that lurked in the shadows, howling in the woods, feeding on blood and cackling curses._

_The hysteria of vampires originated from the premature burial of a live person who was thought to have passed away. Humans explained their shortcomings of their medical knowledge by stating that missing bodies came back to life. Illnesses and mysterious deaths were also chalked up to vampirism. And there was the belief of garlic and crosses being able to ward off such evil. Of course, none of this could be further from the truth._

_Then there was the legend of men being slaves to the night, transforming from man to wolf while under the silver light of a full moon. There were supposed attacks reporting that livestock was slaughtered by an 'animal' and a person was blamed. And then there was the belief of lycanthropy being a medical condition that explained a person's appearance and behavior. A silver bullet was said to solve a werewolf problem. Not too far off from the real thing._

_Finally, witches were believed to be people who were able to perform magic spells and call upon spirits. Most witches were thought to be pagans doing sinister work. There was the fact that many people who were accused of practicing witchcraft were simply natural healers or so-called 'wise women' whose choice of profession was misunderstood. This legend rang truer than any other._

_All these mythical creatures that were said to be malevolent and evil bred from hell did have something in common__–__they were all creatures connected to the moon in some way._

**.**

Large, hazel eyes took in the words as they roamed over the sentences printed on the page of a small book being held in the dainty hands of a young girl. Any sound around her was dulled and pushed back to be background noise as the teenage girl read the book behind the counter of a quaint bookstore situated on the corner of a street in the 'Windy City' of Chicago. It was a quiet night and not many customers were entering the establishment at such a late hour to read a book in the small seating area they had next to another counter that provided coffee and some pastries, so she decided to find a way to pass the time.

This teenage girl of petite physique had a delicate figure and olive skin with a rosy complexion, only standing at five feet and two inches. She possessed silky tresses of cinnamon-chocolate hair that she kept in a messy ponytail with bangs that were parted at the center, its wisps framing her heart-shaped face. Over her clothes, she wore a black apron that all employees had to wear, along with her name tag that read 'Gwen'.

"What do we have here?" an amused voice interrupted the young girl's thoughts, hands plucking the book from the teenager's hands. The other female was older by four years, making her twenty years old. She was also taller by four inches. Like the younger girl, she had long hair that fell past her shoulders in soft waves of chocolate brown, which contrasted against her blue eyes. Her long bangs that framed her oval-shaped face were slightly parted at the right and swept to the left. And her skin was slightly pale with rosy cheeks and a very light dusting of freckles. "Where did you get this?" she asked with knowing eyes as she held up the book, her lips pulling up into a smirk.

Gwen smiled, trying her best to look innocent. "It was lying around," she said, looking around the store, "among all of the other books."

"Really?" snorted the older girl, right eyebrow raised and lips smiling.

"Really," said Gwen, nodding.

"You're lucky I like you," the young woman said as she handed back the book, leaning her elbows on the counter next to her young friend.

The teenager sighed with a playful roll of her eyes. "You've always liked me, June."

"Maybe," the older girl chuckled, wiggling her eyebrows as best as she could.

"Whatever," Gwen remarked while smiling as she opened the book on the last page she read.

Juniper released a small laugh from within her throat. "So," she began as her eyes fell on the cover of her book, "why the sudden interest?"

"Don't know. I just got curious," Gwen questioned in return, her eyes roaming over the few pictures in the book that depicted horrid images of supernatural creatures in different settings. "I mean, it's not like we don't know the truth."

"Yes, but we can like reading the myths and legends humans come up with," Juniper said as she straightened up to glance at the pages of the book that was recently brought to her store. "It makes you think how clueless we'd be, just like most people are."

Gwen hummed, still not taking her eyes off the book.

"You can take it," said Juniper, gaining the other girl's attention, "if you want."

"Really?" asked Gwen.

Juniper nodded with a soft smile. "I know how much you like reading whatever you can get your hands on and there are a lot more in the back, so do whatever you want with it."

"Thanks, June," Gwen said with a smile as she closed the book, now knowing that she had time to read the whole thing.

"Yeah, yeah." Juniper smiled as she placed her hands on her hips. "You should get going." When Gwen raised an eyebrow, she continued. "Look, this place is deserted at this hour, and I can close up on my own. My apartment's upstairs, but yours is not, so get moving."

"Fine, mother dearest," Gwen teased as she took off her black apron that all employees had to wear, along with her name tag, handing all the items to Juniper's extended hands. Now she stood in only a pair of high-waisted, skinny jeans that had a light blue, button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled up tucked into them and a pair of beige booties that had a low heel; it was the regular outfit she wore to work at the café, much like Juniper's.

"Mother knows best," Juniper teased back.

Gwen chuckled as she shook her head while putting on her denim jacket that had gray sleeves and a hoodie, gathering her taupe crossbody purse that she slung over her right shoulder. She also made sure that her phone and book were safely stored in her purse before bidding goodnight to Juniper. The teenage girl stepped out of the bookstore as she waved her hand to Juniper through the door's glass and then she was on her way to her home. She breathed in the crisp night air and wrapped her arms around herself, walking along an almost empty street and passing by dimly lit alleyways without a second glance.

Thinking about her borrowed book's contents, Gwen noticed that the setting she found herself in was perfect for a supernatural creature to attack. And just as the thought crossed her mind, she found her sight blurred as her body was forcibly pushed into a darkened alley.

Sharp fangs.

And then a scream echoed.

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**I hope this little teaser has you all interested!**

**I will greatly appreciate any comments or criticism (good or bad are always constructive to my writing), so review.**

**Fave and Follow to your hearts content!**

**See you soon for the next chapter!**


	2. of vampires, witches, and something else

**Hello! I am happy to report that I'll be officially posting chapters. Also, I would like to make things clear, since I've been asked by a few that this is a complete rewrite/remake/whatever of my other story of the same name, "Fire In The Water", and I apologize for to those who fell in love with it, but I had lost inspiration and I wanted to have a fresh start. Really sorry! I still have the old story, but I discontinued it. I still thank you all for the support and hope that it continues.**

**Now, for my responses to reviews (it's a new thing I'm trying out for you guys, so you guys can tell me to stop or not):**

**_-Harley 29 joker_: Thanks. I was indecisive on how to start, so I just went with what I thought would be more exciting.**

**_-jessisthebestduh_: Again, sorry for having taken it down, but I cleaned out my account for a fresh start, but I am grateful for the continued support and that you loved the other story. I hope you you this one as well.**

**_-margie de jager_: Thanks for the support. I hope you all love it!**

**_-GhostGypsy_: Appreciate the support! Just to let you know, I am keeping the Gwen/Kol dynamic, but there will be changes to the story from my other fic and the show. I am gonna focus more on Gwen and developing the characters to the best of my ability. I also changed the type of relationship between Klaus and Gwen, so I am excited to delve into that.**

**_-Malou23_: Hellooo! I am the author of the story you just mentioned and I still have it, but I am debating on whether to post it or not, since I am not going to continue to write it and am focusing on revamping it. Thanks for the support and hope you enjoy!**

**Done! Now back to the story!**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing from The Vampire Diaries and claim no ownership over anything pertaining to it. I only own my characters.**

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_of vampires, witches, and something else…_

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Chicago, Illinois

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"I don't get why you're still smiling away," Gwen huffed as she walked into the living room in pink ankle socks, tying her slightly damp hair in a messy bun on top of her head, a few strands that escaped her bun her face. She wore a Henley-style dress in burgundy that had a V-shaped neckline and mini skirt with a partial mock button-front, long sleeves and a flowy silhouette. The only accessory she wore was a rose gold necklace from which hung a round-shaped pearl. "You aren't funny."

The man seated on her cream-colored couch chuckled, his arms spread over the back of the piece of furniture, his dimples more pronounced the more he grinned. "You have to admit, it was a bit funny." He cleared his throat to _try_ and hide his amusement when she shot him a halfhearted glare. "It's not my fault you're so easily frightened."

"Of course, there's nothing to worry about a silly vampire attack," Gwen said with sarcasm lacing her voice. She passed by the dining area and into the kitchen that had a view of the living room. She went about making some tea for her guest and herself, having already had breakfast. "You were gone longer this time, Nik." She glanced over to the living room, seeing him pick up the remote to turn on the television.

"I was," was his vague answer, which annoyed Gwen. "Now that you remind me," he began settling on a channel showing a comedy sitcom before glancing at Gwen, "I thought that we agreed that you wouldn't take late shifts. At least not while I am not around." He huffed with a shrug of his shoulders. "Although I find it hard to understand why you work when there's no need for it. You know I provide you with anything you need."

Gwen rolled her eyes as she finished serving the tea in two cups and placing cinnamon sticks in them before walking into the living room, handing the green mug to him and holding onto the pink one. "First of all, I like working in a place I like. Second, I have June with me," she argued as she sat down beside him. "Also, I am an isolated, homeschooled teenager who has no personal contact with many people. I need to find ways to socialize a little, and June is the only friend I have."

The response she received was a scoff. "Yes, a witch that we've only known for around a year, and you deem that she's the best person to socialize with."

"Paranoid as ever, I see," Gwen mumbled into her mug as she took a sip of her vanilla tea, turning her attention to the classic sitcom she enjoyed a lot–_Friends_. She reclined back, holding onto her mug with both of her hands to warm them.

"I can't have you walking about at night, Lyn," he sternly remarked, but his tone of voice held a playful edge to it. "Don't you know that's when monsters come out to play?" He raised an eyebrow, giving her a pointed look as he took a sip of his tea.

"Is the big, bad Niklaus Mikaelson worried about little old me?" Gwen chuckled, bumping her shoulder into his.

Klaus smirked while rolling his eyes. "Is it that surprising?"

Gwen shook her head as she hummed. "Not really."

"I thought I told you not to be out and about at such a late hour," he scolded.

"I _know_, but I can't be cooped up my whole life," she countered, frowning at him. "I know that it's for my own safety, but I'm sixteen and have barely seen the world past a few blocks from wherever you move us to. I mean, I barely even get involved in the supernatural world."

Klaus looked away, having heard her say similar words for the past few years. "All the better for you."

"Nik, I haven't even travelled out of the country. It's suffocating not being able to do _more_," Gwen huffed, growing frustrated. "You don't even let me help you with whatever stuff you have going on, and I can at least do that."

"Out of the question," Klaus said with finality.

"Nik," Gwen tried once more, but she was prepared for the same response he always gave her.

Klaus gave her a steely gaze that had her closing her mouth. "I think I've made myself clear," he said and even if his voice was calm, Gwen could sense the warning behind his words and in his eyes. "Now, I want you to stop this nonsense so that we can move past this pointless argument. We haven't seen one another for a while, so we should be enjoying ourselves before I go tend to some business. How does that sound?"

Gwen gave him a reluctant nod, knowing she wasn't going to get anywhere with him when his mood turned sour. "Fine," she sighed, looking back at the television while taking a sip of her tea.

He glanced at a corner in the room, recognizing the items stacked together. He grinned before looking back at her. "Have you been drawing?"

"Painting, actually," said Gwen, also having glanced at the canvases that she stacked against the wall in the corner of the living room. "I wanted to try something different. I quite like it, especially mixing colors."

He hummed, now growing curious and eager to see what she had made so far. "I'll have to take a look later."

Gwen smiled at him as she curled up her legs beneath her, having left her mug on the coffee table in front of her. "I missed you," she whispered as she opted to focus on him being with her. The side of her head rested on his right shoulder with her head tilted upward to stare at him. He gave her a small smile in acknowledgement. "There's something different about you." She became silent as her fingers played with the hem of her dress. "Are you going to tell me what happened?"

Klaus took a deep breath and finished his tea, sitting up straight as he went to place the mug on the coffee table, his movements causing Gwen to also sit up straight. "I do have some news," he said as he faced her, grinning with dimples and all. He paused and said nothing, prompting her to nod for him to continue. "You're looking at a full-fledged _hybrid_."

The brunette's eyes widened, her mouth falling open in shock. She suddenly took his hands in her own to connect her skin with his, and then she closed her eyes. She breathed in through her nose and focused on reaching out to a familiar sensation. As always, whenever she used her skills to get a perception of someone, she relied on what she felt from that person. When it came to Klaus, for as long as she could remember, he always made her feel like she was standing outside in a breezy night while wearing a thin jacket. It wasn't exactly icy-cold like from what she felt from other vampires that she had met, since it was more like a chilly feeling that didn't reach all parts of your body. But now, there was something different. Once her skin met his, she felt like she was warmly enveloped in furry layers while out in a cold day.

"It's true," Gwen exhaled with her eyes wide in shock, looking up at his dimpled smirk.

"Is it that hard to believe in my word?" asked Klaus, feigning hurt by taking his hand out of Gwen's grasp to place it over his chest. The teenage girl raised a knowing eyebrow at him. "What?" he questioned the look she directed at him.

"Your word is duplicitous," Gwen argued.

Klaus huffed good-naturedly. "I am glad that I inspire such confidence in you."

"So, you completed the ritual," she remarked, curious about something. "Why did it take so long?" He was unusually gone for too long, which she found odd, considering he didn't like leaving her alone for an indefinite amount of time. "I thought you had everything planned out, that it was all ready for when you got there."

Klaus cleared his throat with a shrug of his shoulders. "Occupational hazard."

Gwen raised an eyebrow, already imagining what could have happened. "I can imagine that there were some deaths." It wasn't a question. Being with Klaus for so many years had helped her come to terms with death rather quickly from a young age. It wasn't like it didn't affect her, but she was used to it, since Klaus was a man who had death nipping at his heels.

"Well, yes," he said, nodding. "There were some locals who were not receptive to my cause." At her raised eyebrow, he continued. "I _politely_ asked them to abide to my demands and no one would get hurt." He paused and thought it over. "Well, no one other than those needed for the ceremony would have gotten hurt," he corrected himself. "I had all of the ingredients picked out, but more people had to die because they forced me to go to my backup plan due to their interference."

"Of course," she sighed, already familiar with the repercussions that fall on those who oppose Klaus. She heard a phone ring and watched as he took his out of his pocket before staring at the screen and typing something on it. "Who is it?" she asked, her curiosity being a bad habit of hers.

"An old friend," he answered absentmindedly, sending his reply. He immediately cursed himself for giving away any type of information, knowing that he only made her more curious than she already was, which would lead to questions and the inevitable argument they always had.

Gwen hummed. "A friend I can't meet."

"Exactly," he answered as he stood up.

"You're leaving?" she asked.

"I have some business to take care of and this can't wait," he told her as he checked that he had his things on him. "As soon as I get everything squared, I'll come back."

The young girl sighed. "You just got here."

"I've already arranged to meet with Gloria, and I would not like to keep her waiting," he said.

"Gloria?" Gwen stood up, making a face of uncertainty.

"We've been over this, Lyn," he sighed, already familiar with the same argument they had ever since they settled in Chicago.

"Wait, and who is this friend you've never mentioned before?" she questioned, getting irritated once more. He always kept her at arm's length in his affairs, and she disliked it because it meant that he was keeping secrets from her. She only knew two of his witches, but only because they had to perform a spell to send his spirit into another body and she worked with them to send his original body to where he was going to perform the ceremony due to her having been the one who watched over his body. "You know, maybe I wouldn't be bothering you so much if you actually let me have a life with a few friends, but you always make them disappear." She was looking to loosen his grip on her, if only to let her know more about the world he kept her from.

"I haven't killed June, so take that as a win." Klaus tried to defend himself, placing his hands on her tense shoulders. "I know I can be a bit difficult," he began and raised a hand when she opened her mouth, "_very_ difficult. Still, I've been," he paused as he searched for a word to describe his attempts at having a better handle on his temper.

"Paranoid. Overprotective," Gwen supplied, raising an eyebrow. "Unreasonable. Short-tempered. Obsessive."

"Those aren't synonyms," argued Klaus, his eyes narrowed with amusement.

"I know," Gwen chuckled. Her smile died down a bit. "Can't you trust me to take care of myself?" He went to answer, but she stopped him. "You've taught me how."

Klaus dropped his head before looking back up at her. "I _do_ trust you," he said as he locked eyes with Gwen. He disliked being the one to cause her any grief, but he just couldn't risk putting her in any harm. "It's everyone else who I can't trust," he began with a sigh. His eyes remained trained on her, looking hesitant to say what was on his mind.

Gwen understood what he meant without him needing to say anything. He was too paranoid to let her go out on her own, and she understood that he didn't like showing any weaknesses to anyone, which was what she was. Still, she wasn't going to let that stop her from wanting to know more. "What do you want me to do?"

"I need you to trust me and let me finish a few things that need taking care of," he said, inhaling a deep breath of relief at having put the discussion to rest for the time being. "We'll talk more and sort everything out after I get back."

She frowned. "You promise?"

"Yes," he said, placing a quick kiss on her temple before stepping away from her. "I only ask that you be patient with me."

"I always have to be," she said, crossing her arms over her chest. "And why do you need to go to Gloria?" she asked, frowning. "Where's your witch?"

"Occupational hazard," said Klaus, and she immediately understood. "I need Gloria to look into something."

Gwen's face scrunched up. "I really don't think you should go to her."

Klaus frowned. "And why is that?" When her eyes dropped to the ground, he pressed. "Gwen," he said, his tone pushing her to continue.

"I just had a bad vibe when I last saw her," she said with a shrug of her shoulders. She recalled when she had visited Klaus' witch's bar when Juniper needed some herbs a few days ago, and she had felt a strange chill go up her spine that didn't sit well with her, as if nothing good would come from associating with Gloria more than they already did. "You know, the ones I get when something bad is going to happen."

"And this is why I can't survive without you," Klaus sighed, grinning at her. "I still need to go see her, but I'll watch out for anything suspicious."

"Does it have to be Gloria?" she asked.

"I need a witch," Klaus sighed.

"Then, go to June," Gwen provided, already predicting his reaction.

"Bloody hell, no," Klaus groaned as he paced for a bit, feeling a headache coming on. "I am already letting her keep her head."

"She's my friend," she countered.

Klaus turned his head to her. "Yes, a friend who could only be using you."

"She needed help finding out a bit of information about her family," Gwen explained once more, but Klaus refused to listen. "She didn't do anything wrong by asking for my help. She's been an amazing friend ever since we moved here." She didn't know how many times she had to tell Klaus the same thing to get him to listen to her, only for him to be distrustful and unconvinced.

"Your faith in others is coming from the perspective of a child," he shot back.

"It lets me make friends much easier than you," she argued, having learned not to take his undesirable comments personally.

Klaus shook his head. "I am not going to trust her with this." He sighed when he saw Gwen avert her eyes, noticing she was upset when he saw her bite a corner of her lower lip. "At least not yet. And I am already on edge with you getting involved with her."

Gwen nodded, opting to change the topic. "And who is this old friend of yours you mentioned?"

Klaus cleared his throat. "Someone from my past. We were mates when I lived here in Chicago."

"Really?" she asked, her interest piqued.

"It's a long story," he began to explain, kissing her cheek before walking to her front door. "I promise to explain everything when I return. Can you live with that?"

"Fine," Gwen sighed.

"Good, then I'll call you later," he told her before closing the door behind him, leaving Gwen on her own.

Gwen hummed. "Duplicitous." Something inside her had Gwen feeling perturbed, like something bad was going to happen, and it made her skin crawl. She walked over to the coffee table and picked up her phone, looking up a contact before dialing the number and placing the phone to her ear. After two rings, her call was picked up. "Hey, are you free today?"

**.**

"So, Klaus still doesn't trust me," Juniper chuckled while she locked the front door of her store. "It's nothing new. That man is walking paranoia, and it's even worse when it comes to you." She glanced at Gwen as the younger girl took off her denim jacket that had long sleeves and hood in gray, placing it on the store's counter. "Still, he really shouldn't have gone to Gloria. That witch really hates him, even more so now that he's a hybrid."

"Well, he refused to listen, so here I am," said Gwen.

"So, can you run what we're doing by me again?" Juniper asked as she turned the sign at the front door of her store to say that they were closed.

Gwen rolled her eyes when she saw Juniper's grin. "You already know."

Juniper chuckled. "I know, I just like hearing you be so rebellious. It's about time." She walked over to a table she had cleaned with two chairs pulled up to it, continuing to take out items from a small bag. "I was getting worried that Klaus would tighten the wool over your eyes."

"I can assume that wasn't a compliment, but I will choose to ignore it," Gwen said with furrowed eyebrows. She walked over to the table Juniper stood by, curious about what was on the table. "What are you doing?" she asked, picking up a purple plant she found pretty.

"Oh, this is just my emergency tool kit," Juniper said, shrugging. "Just some herbs, stones and potions I tend to carry with me at all times. It helps being prepared." She looked up at what Gwen was inspecting. "That's vervain."

"I know," Gwen said as she placed it down. "Nik gave me a pot of that and some wolfsbane, just in case."

Juniper nodded. "Smart man."

"Are we using any of these things?" Gwen asked as she picked up a deep blue stone.

"Well, since we just want to eavesdrop on whatever Klaus is doing with Gloria, I only need you," Juniper explained as she sat down on a chair at the table, motioning for Gwen to sit across from her.

"Just me?" Gwen asked with a raised eyebrow as she sat down.

"You and Klaus have a strong bond, and I could not ask for a better way to connect with him," Juniper said as she extended her arms on top of the table, gesturing for Gwen's hands. "I am only going to glimpse into his mind and see what he's doing, nothing major. It'll help us figure out what he needs from Gloria."

Gwen hummed, going to reach for Juniper's hands but hesitating. Suddenly, this was becoming more real for her. When she called Juniper after Klaus left, her mind was clear on what she wanted to do. Adding curiosity and frustration to her anger had pushed her to do as she pleased in hopes of doing _something_ to get Klaus to listen to her. Now that she calmed down, she felt like she was breaking his trust and was afraid of what would happen if he found out, not that she was scared that he would harm her, but she knew from experience that he didn't need to lay a hand on her to punish her in some way. Her eyes widened, feeling like the air had been knocked out of her and her chest was being constricted after realizing that Juniper could be in danger. She could already picture Juniper's smiling face in the news as some reporter talked about her murder.

Having noticed a shift in Gwen's demeanor, Juniper sighed but grinned. "What, chickening out?"

"Maybe we shouldn't do this," Gwen said, placing her hands on her lap.

Juniper raised an eyebrow. "Why not?"

Taking a deep breath to calm her heart, Gwen gulped before she said, "I just don't want to see you get hurt. Nik can be cruel." Her eyes fell to her fidgeting hands, her fingers playing with the silver bracelet she had been given when she was smaller that had a silver wolf pendant hanging from it. "He could get upset and take it out on you."

"Look," Juniper began with a sigh, "Klaus is not going to do anything to me. This isn't my first tango with an Original, and I am not doing this without my insurance that I will survive him."

Gwen frowned. "Wait, you know another Original?"

It was Juniper's turn to frown. "Yes, but the one I met had way more manners than Klaus." She smirked. "He was quite handsome in that suit of his."

"So, you know someone from Klaus' family?" asked Gwen, curious to hear more about the family she knew so little of.

"Yes, but he just wanted me to do some locator spells," Juniper explained, shrugging. "He's known as the 'Noble Brother'." Noticing how Gwen was interested to know more by the look on her face, she was coming to realize something. "Wait, you haven't met any other Original?"

Gwen's eyes looked away from Juniper, not really knowing how to feel about the question. She would like to say that she does know other members of Klaus' family, but she didn't. She had yet to meet any of them. "I haven't," she confessed. "Whenever I ask about them, he tells me that they're not close and that they have been estranged for some time."

Juniper hummed. "I think you should start getting answers for yourself." She gestured for Gwen's hands once more with a flick of her fingers, noticing how the teenager still appeared to be hesitant. "Look," she began with a sigh, "Klaus has kept you in the dark for long enough. There is nothing wrong with wanting to spread your wings a bit. Besides, you only want to make sure that he's all right." She smiled with sympathy when Gwen met her eyes. "You deserve to choose what you want to do in life, so this is your decision."

Sighing as her eyes fell on Juniper's inviting hands, Gwen could not help but think about what she wanted, and she really didn't know what that was. Klaus always gave her whatever she wanted, but she was never satisfied. She felt like she needed to do more in life than just sit and do nothing, she wanted more than the gilded cage he always kept her in. She was beyond grateful for everything he had done for her, but she wanted to also help him. He was very important to her and could not imagine her life without him in it. She refused to be left in the dark, so she placed her hands in Juniper's, looking up to lock eyes with the witch and nodding.

"I knew you'd make the right choice," Juniper said with a smile before taking a deep breath and closing her eyes, exhaling through her nose. Focusing on the faces of Klaus and Gloria, she calmed herself and emptied her mind before whispering, "_Leig leam faicinn tro shùilean a 'mhadaidh-allaidh neo-bhàsmhor_." Opening her eyes, they turned from their usual light blue to a milky white.

Images flashed through Juniper's eyes, as if she was there witnessing the events herself. She recognized that she was seeing through Klaus' eyes, finding that he was sitting in front of Gloria inside her bar before his eyes shifted to a young man who had dark blond hair and green eyes with a photo in his hands. Suddenly, her eyes snapped closed and different images were created in her mind. One image she could identify was that of a silver necklace before she was dropped in what she assumed was a forest, gasping when bloodied faces appeared in her vision, but then she found herself in a warehouse. Walking further at high speed into this warehouse, she saw caskets in a corner before she was thrusted out of the building and back to reality.

Juniper gasped as she let go of Gwen's hands, violently falling back against the back of her chair as she panted, her mind calming down from having been going through someone else's head with many images to sort through. She cleared her throat and fought to get large gulps of air with a hand placed over her chest.

"June?" Gwen stood from her chair and walked over to stand by the witch's side, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Are you okay?" she asked, worry evident in her eyes and tone of her voice.

"I'm fine," Juniper sighed before smiling up at Gwen. "It's not easy breaking into an Original's mind." She took one final deep breath and collected herself before straightening up on her seat. "Any other vampire makes this look like child's play for me, but this was on a whole other level." While she never struggled with the spell before, this time was different when she felt like gravity wanted to crush her. She cleared her throat and reached for a small jar from her bag to look at its contents. "Still, I managed to get something that can help us."

"Really?" asked Gwen, watching Juniper's every move.

Juniper hummed as she nodded her head. "He's at Gloria's right now, but there was someone else with them."

"He mentioned that he came back with a friend," Gwen supplied, to which Juniper snorted.

"Please," Juniper scoffed, "the closest thing that man has to a friend is you, but you are family, so that doesn't count." She was amused to know that Klaus had a friend, something that she never thought she would hear about the hybrid. "Well, I think I know where he keeps his secret stash or something. It could help us figure out our next move."

"What about Gloria?" asked Gwen, still worried about the white-haired witch.

"Well, he already talked to her. I couldn't tell what it was about, so we need to figure that out if we're going to find out what's causing you to have a bad feeling about her," Juniper explained.

Gwen nodded before she asked, "And how will we do that?"

"Not 'we'," said Juniper as she stood up and pointed at Gwen. "You."

"Me?" Gwen raised an eyebrow. "You know I'm not very good with this magic stuff. Even you find it hard to comprehend my magic."

"Well, practice makes perfect," Juniper said as she poured the white sand that was inside the jar on top of the table, stopping when she emptied the white sand out. "To find the location of where we're going, I would have needed you to have gone there or have something that connects me to something that's there. We have none of that, so it falls to you." She placed the empty jar on the table.

"Okay, but what do I do?" Gwen asked as she stared at the sand.

"You're going to use me," Juniper explained, elaborating when she saw the confused frown appear on Gwen's face. "Your magic is far stronger than anyone can ever imagine because it doesn't need to rely on the restriction witches have to do their spells. Your magic is pure and raw." The witch grabbed the younger girl's hands, smiling encouragingly. "You only need to see what I saw and wish to know where it is, and I'll handle helping you focus your power."

Gwen was still doubtful that this would work, but she decided to try anyway. Closing her eyes, she tried to reach out into Juniper's mind through their connected hands, feeling the other woman's warmth. It was always difficult for Gwen to focus on her own magic, it made her feel uncomfortable in her own skin due to how much she felt, which was what made it hard for her to control it. But, if she were to keep the amount of magic that she used small, she was able to not have much trouble. Green, vein-like light spread from within Gwen's skin and into Juniper's before disappearing around her elbows. Once they were connected, Juniper brought what she just saw to the front of her mind, allowing Gwen to see it. After she saw Juniper's memories, Gwen tried to find out where it was and willed her magic to tell her. The green light inside their skins faded as Gwen opened her eyes, locking eyes with Juniper before disconnecting their hands.

Juniper shook her body with a grin. "Your magic never fails to send a thrill through my body."

"Good to know," Gwen said with an awkward smile and one eyebrow raised.

"Don't forget that your magic is rare," Juniper explained, turning back to the table. "Why do you think Klaus is so overprotective of you?"

Gwen nodded. "I know," she said as she stood beside Juniper. Her eyes landed on the table and frowned as she saw what the sand spelled out to them. "Is that it?"

"Yes." Juniper nodded. "You asked nature what you wanted to know, and it answered."

Gwen nodded. "Is that it?"

On top of the table, the sand had spread and assembled into numbers, at which Juniper smiled at. "We have our heading."

.

"Ugh," Juniper groaned as she stared up at the building in front of them, the eerie silence making her nervous. "Why couldn't he have picked somewhere less creepy?" She looked down at the map displayed in her phone. "The damn GPS had us going in circles for quite a while. I mean, it's already nighttime," she huffed as she looked around the desolate area. "And it's too quiet."

Gwen stared up at the warehouse, her eyes narrowing when they landed on a door. She could hear whispering, causing her to look behind her before her eyes surveyed the area, but she didn't see anything or anyone else. It wasn't the first time she heard voices, since they always served as a guide. She could tell that they were coming from inside the warehouse, which made her curious as to what could possibly be inside. She began to walk toward the entrance of the warehouse, following the voices whispering in her ear.

"Gwen?" Juniper frowned, noticing how the young girl was not being more careful. If this was a place Klaus was keeping some of his things, then she knew they had to be watching out for any guards that he could have left behind. "All right, into the creepy warehouse we go." She straightened her beige coat and followed Gwen into the building.

Pushing the door open, Gwen peeked her head in to find that the inside was dimly lit with Juniper right behind her. "Why would Nik be in this place?" Gwen wondered out loud.

"Maybe to plot and torture," Juniper joked, keeping her voice low. "He may be an ass of a hybrid now, but he still has some class. I doubt he'd make a mess where he sleeps." She hummed as she thought about what she had seen when she invaded Klaus' mind. "Still, I saw that there's something he's hiding here."

Gwen guessed that Klaus had picked this place due to how little storage she saw with the pallet racks mostly empty, which meant that not many people would drop by. Both girls stepped further in and allowed the door to close behind them, which made a loud sound that echoed throughout the whole place, causing them to freeze for a moment as they waited for something to happen. They were met with silence, so they kept going with only the small heels of their booties making any sound. All they could smell was nothing but the dust that had accumulated over the years.

As they walked along a path between pallet racks, Gwen stopped in her tracks when her eyes landed on something that she found odd. "Are those caskets?"

Juniper looked around Gwen, her eyes narrowing when she recognized the caskets from the vision she had when she had connected her mind with Klaus'. "That's what I saw when I did the spell," Juniper said as she walked around Gwen to approach the closed coffins. "He had been thinking about this place while he was talking with Gloria."

Gwen felt strange, every nerve in her body telling her that this was not a good place. The whispering was getting louder as she stepped closer to the coffins, hearing voices scream and rage. She even felt that anger, disbelief, murderous intent and many other thoughts of ill intent hung heavily in the air surrounding the caskets. A memory surfaced from when she was much younger and had wandered around a home Klaus had settled them in, remembering seeing something like this, but Klaus had pulled her away before she could see what was inside. "They're not empty," she said as she approached the coffin Juniper was standing in front of, no longer hearing the voices.

"Of course not," Juniper mumbled as she placed a hand on the smooth surface. She reached for the latch and grunted when she lifted the lid. When they saw what was inside, both girls gasped in surprise at the body resting within. "Elijah," she said below a whisper, recognizing the sharp figures of Klaus' older brother.

"Who?" Gwen asked as her heart picked up speed, frowning as she stared at the gray and desiccated body of a man in suit. She had to admit that–if it weren't for the ill-looking skin–she would have found the man to be quite handsome. Also, she knew him from somewhere. "I think I've met him before."

"He's Klaus' older brother," Juniper answered as she stepped back, her mind spinning.

"His brother?" Gwen exhaled as she stared at the dagger embedded in his chest. She couldn't understand what any of this meant. "When we met, he asked about the city." She looked back up at his face, remembering how she met him some time ago when they bumped into one another, which led to them having lunch together. "I knew he was a vampire, but I had no idea he was Nik's brother."

"It's what Klaus does," Juniper began to explain as she went to close the lid of the coffin. "I've only heard rumors about this, about how he keeps them in coffins after daggering them because of some sort of disagreement." She shook her head and turned around to stare at the other coffins. "We shouldn't meddle with this. Let's just go."

Gwen was still trying to comprehend what she saw. "Is he dead?" She looked at the other coffins, feeling a bit scared as goosebumps crawled all over her. "Are they all dead?"

"No," Juniper answered, noticing another coffin in the far corner. "He uses those daggers to incapacitate them, to put them in a very painful sleep." She approached the open coffin and found it empty. "They're his family." She looked over the coffin and found a dead body of what she assumed was a bodyguard, noticing the blood that had spilled from a wound in his neck.

"This isn't right," Gwen whispered as she looked at the coffins.

"We should go," Juniper said as she turned to face Gwen, only to gasp when she came face-to-face with a smirking blonde, causing Gwen to also gasp when she saw the woman standing in front of Juniper.

"Oh, don't be ridiculous," said the young woman in a white flapper dress that had a dark stain over her chest. "You both just got here in time for dessert." The whites of her eyes turned red and veins protruded from beneath her eyes before opening her mouth to show her sharp canines through her grin.

Juniper hardened her gaze, focusing on the blonde that took a step back with her hands on her head while releasing hisses and groans full of pain. "Run!" she yelled at Gwen, but that one second she was distracted was enough for the vampire to push her against the empty coffin, causing the witch to fall to the ground with a groan as pain shot through her side.

Gwen was about to step toward Juniper but was stopped when the vampire appeared in front of her, the yelp that wanted to escape her being suffocated when the blonde grasped her by the throat. "Now, now," the blonde vampire began as she pulled a wheezing Gwen closer to her face. "Let's not do anything foolish. I am far too famished to work for my food." As she was about to sink her fangs into Gwen's skin, she stopped when she picked up on a scent she hadn't encountered in so long. She brushed her nose against Gwen's neck and took a deep breath, her nose being filled with such a blissful and energetic feeling from the sweet scent. "Impossible," she mumbled as she frowned, pulling back to stare at the young girl's face. "I thought you lot were extinct."

A blur pushed the blonde vampire off Gwen, causing the young girl to cough as she fought to get some air in her lungs while rubbing her hands where the vampire's hand had been squeezing the life out of her. As she touched where the hand had been wrapped around her throat, she knew that a bruise would form. Her eyes landed on Juniper as the witch managed to climb to her feet on wobbly legs while using a coffin for support. She looked up to find that Klaus was holding the blonde vampire by her neck.

"Come now, Rebekah," Klaus began as he held on tighter to his younger sister's neck. "Is that any way to greet someone?"

Rebekah pushed Klaus' hands off her before plunging her dagger into his chest, eliciting a groan from him. "Go to hell, Nik," she hissed before stepping back. She watched as he took out the dagger from his chest and dropped it to the floor beside him.

"Don't pout," Klaus said as he smirked at the fuming blonde. "You knew it wouldn't kill me."

"I was hoping it would hurt more," Rebekah huffed, watching as Juniper walked over to Gwen's side on the floor. "I take it that they're not snacks."

"No, but I do have a little peace offering waiting for you," Klaus said with an edge to his voice before glancing at Gwen, walking over to her side just as Juniper got her to her feet. He lifted a hand and gently grasped Gwen's cheek to turn her head from side to side, his eyes looking over the darkening bruise. After releasing Gwen, he looked up at both girls with a glare set on his features. "We'll be discussing this little stunt later."

Both Gwen and Juniper remained quiet as they held onto one another, keeping each other upright.

Rebekah stared at both girls with her arms crossed over her chest, but her eyes were solely focused on Gwen. "And what have we got there, Nik?"

Klaus turned to Rebekah, already dreading what was to come. "Whatever do you mean, little sister?"

"I mean, dear brother," Rebekah began as she gave Klaus an unimpressed look, nodding at Gwen. "How the bloody hell did you come by a faerie?"

* * *

_**Rough translation (Scottish-Gaelic to English):**_

_**Leig leam faicinn tro shùilean a 'mhadaidh-allaidh neo-bhàsmhor.**__**–**__**Allow me to see through the eyes of the immortal wolf.**_

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**End of chapter!**

**I hope you guys enjoyed!**

**Tell me what you guys think with the new direction I am taking the story. I went with fairy, 'cause I wanted to use a supernatural species that hasn't appeared on the show and have more...more than what a ghost can do. I would really appreciate what you guys think.**

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**See you guys in the next chapter!**


	3. gilded cage

**Hello, all! I give you guys the next chapter, which I hope you all enjoy. I would also like to say that I am very grateful and happy with the support that you guys give. Now, for the reviews response:**

**_-Fidjie_: Thanks, and I am so happy you liked it. Also, since I've been asking and I've received similar responses, I am working on gathering my previous "Fire In The Water" stories to publish them once more in the near future. Sadly, they'll be discontinued.**

**_-Guest_: I will publish the old story of "Fire In The Water" after I make sure I have every document. As I said, it will be discontinued, but you guys will be able to read it soon. And thank you very much, I am so grateful for the compliment and will aspire to do better.**

**_-GhostGypsy_: Thank you so much! I am glad you enjoyed. You will also notice that the Klaus/Gwen relationship changed and that Gwen's personality is somewhat different than the Gwen from my other story, which obviously includes her powers that will grow as time goes by. I am trying to do better in character developments and arcs and such, so yous guys have the green light to critique; it betters my writing.**

**_-Love . Fiction . 2020_: No, I am for sure NOT changing the pairing to Klaus/Gwen, but I did change the type of relationship from best friends to something else that is and WILL NOT be in any way romantic. It's staying Kol/Gwen, so don't worry about that.**

**Back to the story...**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing belonging to the Vampire Diaries and claim no ownership over anything pertaining to it. I only own my characters and whatever else that is not from the show.**

* * *

_gilded cage_

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Morning light seeped into the apartment, illuminating the pale-colored walls of the living room in Gwen's home with the warm orange and pink tones of sunrise. The young girl paced around the room in a short-sleeved, pink nightdress that reached above her knees and had an allover print of T-rex dinosaurs, which she matched with ankle socks that were a light gray. She sipped some vanilla tea from a mug with the TV on a random channel due to her wanting to fill in the silence that spread throughout her home, which helped calm her anxiety. It didn't help that she had not been able to get a wink of sleep after her near-deadly encounter with Klaus' sister the night before. Klaus had sent her off with Juniper, while he dealt with his fuming sister but promising to come by her apartment in the morning.

There were too many scenarios going through Gwen's mind as she thought about how Klaus' mood was going to be when he came by, about what he might do. She would be an idiot if she said that Klaus didn't frighten her a bit, of what he was capable of. She was confident that he would never hurt her–not on purpose–but she was still afraid for Juniper's life, since she could only conclude that Klaus would punish her by taking the only friend she had, leaving her alone without anyone else but him. Still, she understood why he became even more paranoid as the years passed. After so many years of threats and dangerous situations where her life was in danger, he only tightened his hold on her and sought to protect her from just about everyone and everything, even if it meant that he had to shelter her from the rest of the world.

Feeling a bit of an uncomfortable pressure around her neck every time she turned her head, as if there was a lump wedged within her throat, Gwen reached up with her free hand and touched the discolored skin of her neck with delicate fingers. It was a bit painful, it even made drinking tea a little difficult for her due to how tender it felt. If she didn't want to have it for the next few days, she would have to use some of her herbs to make a paste and reduce the dark handprint that decorated her neck.

The knock on her door startled the young woman, her heart having almost jumped out of her chest. She shook her head and took a deep breath to calm herself down. She set her mug on the coffee table before walking to her front door while mentally preparing herself for what she knew was waiting for her on the other side of the wooden door, which was why she wasn't surprised to be met with a scowling Klaus leaning against her doorway with his arms folded over his chest.

"Good morning to you," Klaus greeted as he passed by her to enter the apartment, his voice dripping with a mix of sarcasm and a dangerous edge to it. He turned to face her as she closed the front door behind her. He approached her and carefully tilted her neck upward, sighing heavily when he saw the hand-sized bruise on her neck. "Pity that vampire blood doesn't work on you. It would have fixed your mistake in no time."

Gwen hummed as she nodded after he released her chin, unable to get a read on him due to the blank look in his eyes. "I'll still heal pretty quickly, just need to use some herbs."

"Have you never heard about what happened to the curious cat?" he asked as his eyebrow furrowed, waiting for her to answer.

Gwen sighed as she wrapped her arms around her abdomen to seek some form of comfort for the oncoming scolding. "I'm sorry," she mumbled, keeping her eyes on the floor.

"Sorry you did something stupid or that you got caught?" countered Klaus, his hands on his hips as he stared down at Gwen.

"Well," Gwen scoffed as she lifted her head, meeting his eyes for a moment before looking away, "what did you expect?" At his questioning look, she continued. "You didn't listen to me about Gloria, so I went to June."

"That's my next stop after I'm done with you," said Klaus.

Gwen's heart froze as she looked up at him with wide eyes. "What're you going to do?" Her voice almost trembled.

"What I should've done the day I met her," said Klaus, his eyes hardening.

"No, you won't!" Gwen countered, fear coursing through her.

"Why not?" asked Klaus, as if his idea of killing Juniper was the only possible solution.

Gwen scoffed, growing angry. "If you're going to punish anyone, punish me. The only reason she was there was because I asked her to help me find you or get ahead of what Gloria was doing."

Klaus' eyebrows furrowed, having thought that Juniper was the one who came up with the idea to get an advantage over him. "Now why did you feel the need to do such a thing when I specifically asked you to trust me?"

"You never tell me anything, so I apologize if I wanted to find out for myself that you were going to be okay. And," she laughed without any humor, "to top it all off, you never told me that you keep your family in freaking coffins!" She realized she had raised her voice at him–not for the first time–but she knew she had to calm down, noticing how her fingers tickled with the familiar feeling of her magic. "I was worried about you," she admitted, steeling herself to look up at him to find him staring at her. She felt her eyes water and the skin of her face become warm due to how frustrated she felt. "I just want to know what's going on. I want to help you."

Klaus stared down at the young girl, seeing the water gathering in her eyes and the desperation on full display. He understood that what happened the night before was his own doing, his own decisions. He should have known better, knowing that he shouldn't have been surprised to see her doing everything he told her not to do. Still, it was his responsibility to look after her. "That doesn't excuse the fact that you placed yourself in danger," he sighed, softening. "I can manage Gloria. I don't need you running around with a neurotic witch looking for trouble that isn't your business."

"We're family, so it _is_ my business," Gwen countered, feeling a bit hurt by his words.

"Yes, but this is not the kind of business I want you to meddle in," Klaus argued, his own eyes glaring down at her. "You won't be able to handle it."

Gwen huffed with a mocking smile. "Oh, yeah, like watching you decapitate people in front of me," she said, sniffling but managing to keep her tears of exasperation at bay.

Klaus rolled his eyes as he turned away from her. "This again."

"Or when you slaughtered those people in Seattle," she added.

"They were witches and only wanted to use you," Klaus defended himself as he whipped around to face her. "That's what it's always about when it comes to you. People only want to use you because you are part-faerie, the last person to have such rare blood coursing through your veins." He knew he was pushing his luck, but he needed her to see his reasoning, having used the argument before to settle her down. "I protect you from the world that only looks to cause you harm."

"But you also keep me from it!" Gwen argued, ignoring falling for the guilt he was targeting. She approached him, giving him a small smile. "You've told me that there is more out there. Great cities and art and music."

Klaus looked away from her as he recalled those very same words he used to say when she was younger, and she couldn't fall asleep. He closed his eyes for a moment before settling them on her own with an impassive look. "That was a long time ago. I need to keep your life safe from any danger."

"I have no life!" She huffed as she ran her trembling fingers through her loose waves of cinnamon-brown hair. "Not only that, you even keep me from yours."

"Whatever do you mean?" he tried to deflect.

Gwen gave him an unimpressed look. "Oh, I don't know," she began, "let's go back to the fact that you have your family in caskets with daggers in their hearts. What's _that_ about?"

Suddenly, the front door was shoved open, drawing Klaus' and Gwen's attention to the blonde standing at the doorway with a smirk on her lips. "I can take over from here."

Gwen recognized the young woman from the night before, but she wasn't wearing the bloodied flapper dress and her hair was more vibrant with a healthier shine. Her face also looked much better, having lost the gray color and veins that marred her smooth skin and made her look so ill. And she now wore a beige sweater dress with long sleeves that she matched with dark brown, knee-high boots.

"What are you doing here, sister?" Klaus asked as he walked over to Rebekah, given that she had yet to receive a proper invitation to be able to enter the apartment. "I sent Stefan to you to entertain you so that he could take you out shopping until I got back."

"Yes, but he took forever to arrive," said Rebekah, shrugging her shoulders. "I got bored, so I decided to see where you keep away such an exquisite creature." Her eyes landed on Gwen, smiling. She took a whiff of the air inside the apartment and her mouth slightly watered when she recognized Gwen's scent was all over the place, finding it quite euphoric. "She really is a lovely thing."

Raising an eyebrow, Klaus asked Rebekah, "How did you find this place?"

Rebekah shrugged her shoulders. "It's not too difficult to track you, Nik."

Klaus was at a loss. He knew that distracting his sister to keep her away from something only motivated her even more to get to what she wanted. He never intended for Gwen to meet his family like this–or at all. Any member of his family could see her as a potential way to get to him, so this predicament made him feel uneasy, which was something he had to keep in check and hide from the scrutinizing gaze of Rebekah. Now that his sister knew about Gwen, there was no way that he would be able to keep the young girl a secret.

"Hello," Gwen greeted the Original vampire at her door.

Rebekah huffed. "Oh, good, at least she has some manners, but I have yet to be invited in."

"You tried to kill me," Gwen reminded the blonde.

"Blame Nik," said Rebekah. "I wouldn't have been so parched and uncivilized if I hadn't been locked up for almost a century."

"You got a point," said Gwen, glancing at Klaus.

"Mind inviting me inside, sweet thing?" Rebekah asked Gwen with a polite smile.

"You can come in," Gwen said, stopping Klaus' attempt to keep his sister outside the apartment. The young girl ignored the pointed look the hybrid sent her way. "This is my home. I can invite and uninvite whoever I want," she told him. While it was probably a bad idea to allow a thousand-year-old vampire entry into her home, Gwen found no harm in giving Klaus' sister the benefit of the doubt. "Besides, she is your sister."

"That there is where the problem lies," said Klaus.

"Thank you, pet," Rebekah said, her gaze dropping to her feet as she stepped inside, finding no invisible wall to keep her from entering the cozy home. Once inside, she looked around. "This is a lovely place."

Klaus sighed heavily. "You have yet to tell me what you're doing here, Rebekah."

"Well," Rebekah began as she walked around the apartment, looking at all the different items she could recognize and the ones that she had no idea what they were. "I was thinking that going shopping today would go over so much better with a lady." She turned to smile at Gwen as she approached the much younger girl. "You'll do just fine."

Somehow, the vampire's smile unnerved Gwen to some extent. While she was used to Klaus' imposing presence, it was a whole different thing when it's another vampire who was just as old as he was. She recognized that Rebekah appeared to be just as intimidating as Klaus, but in her own way.

"She's not a tourist guide," Klaus said as he crossed his arms over his chest. "I'll compel another girl to show you around and get whatever you need." He was slightly glaring at Rebekah. "I only ask that you _try_ to behave."

"And why are you so grumpy?" Rebekah asked Klaus, having noticed how his mood was worsening.

Klaus scoffed. "I needed one thing from you for my witch to find out why my hybrids are dying, one thing." He lifted his arms and let them fall back to his sides. "Your necklace, which you lost."

"I didn't lose it," Rebekah countered. "It's just been missing for ninety years."

Gwen frowned at Klaus. "What do you mean that your hybrids are dying?"

Finding no need to not tell her at this point, Klaus said, "It appears that when I try to turn a werewolf into a hybrid, they die."

"Did Gloria tell you why they're dying?" Gwen asked him.

"I _was_ going to get an answer for that, but this one here," he paused to gesture to Rebekah, "lost the only way for me to get the fix for my problem."

"Again, not my fault," said Rebekah. "It probably got lost when you put me in a box after shoving a dagger in my heart."

Klaus closed his eyes and restrained himself from falling into yet another bickering match with Rebekah. "We're getting off topic here."

"Yes, we are," Rebekah agreed as she walked over to Gwen and touched the brunette's hair to push it behind an ear. "You go find Stefan and do whatever boys do these days, while your little pet helps me."

"'Pet'?" Gwen was not sure she liked or disliked the nickname, not with the tone Rebekah used while saying it.

"And why should I allow that?" asked Klaus, glaring at his sister. While he disliked the idea of leaving Gwen alone with Rebekah, he also didn't want to leave Stefan on his own for too long without knowing where he was. Even though he restored the young vampire's memories, Klaus had yet to fully trust him, since he was a different man from the one who he knew back in the twenties.

"What's the harm?" Rebekah countered with her own question. She sighed with a roll of her eyes. "I promise not to do anything to your little pet. She's in very good hands."

Klaus wanted to argue and keep Gwen away from Rebekah, but he had other matters to deal with. "Fine," he relented before grabbing Rebekah's arm and pulling her a bit away from Gwen. "Listen carefully, little sister," he whispered with a scowl on his features. "No harm comes to her. If there is so much as a hair out of place, you will find yourself back in your coffin to rot for another century."

Rebekah was taken aback by this, not understanding why Klaus was so protective of the girl. He didn't even bother to hide that he had a soft spot for the young girl. "Why is she so important to you, Nik?" She watched his body language as he released her arm. "It's been quite a while since I've seen you like this."

"She's my responsibility," he said as the only explanation he was willing to offer. "Besides, I don't need to remind you what happens to those of her kind. Keep an eye out."

"I know what to do, darling brother," said Rebekah. "This isn't my first time with a faerie."

"Half-faerie," Klaus corrected her, causing her to frown. "Her scent is not as strong as a full-fledged faerie, but it can still attract unwanted attention."

"Right," said Rebekah. "Go on, then. Run your errands."

Klaus glanced at Gwen. "Can you take the day to suffer my incorrigible sister?"

Rebekah glared at him. "Don't be an ass."

Gwen nodded at Klaus. "Yeah, I'll just call June and tell her to cover my shift."

"I'll do that myself when I stop by before meeting up with Stefan," Klaus said as he went to leave.

"Wait!" Gwen called, causing Klaus to pause at her doorway and turn to face her. "Promise me that her life is not in any danger."

"You wanted me to get a second opinion, didn't you?" asked Klaus, already disliking the idea forming in his mind.

Gwen was surprised by this, her lips slightly quirking up. "You won't hurt her?"

"Not unless she starts something that she won't be able to finish," he said with a smirk before taking his leave and closing the door behind him.

Once they were left alone, Gwen's attention went to Rebekah. "So, I'll just go get ready and we'll be on our way."

"I didn't catch your name, pet," Rebekah said, stopping Gwen from leaving the room.

"It's Gwendolyn Moone, but you can call me Gwen," said the young girl.

Rebekah nodded with a smile. "Right."

"I'll be quick," Gwen said before going into her room.

Rebekah watched as the young girl disappeared into a room, becoming quite curious with the girl her older brother was so keen on keeping protected. This curiosity was what caused her to ditch Stefan and find out more about the rare creature Klaus appeared to prefer to keep hidden, which only made her more determined to learn more about the half-breed her brother seemed to be so fond of.

.

Juniper politely smiled as she waved at a customer leaving her store before she fell back on a chair behind the counter of her store as she exhaled a heavy sigh, her smile disappearing. She had contemplated closing for the day after having had a long night, but she had ends to meet. Also, it was a good way to keep her mind busy from worrying about Gwen, given that she just left the younger girl at her apartment. She had offered to stay the night, but Gwen insisted that it was better that Klaus didn't see her there. And now she needed to focus on staying alive, considering that she shouldn't count on Gwen managing to convince Klaus not to kill her.

Just then, every nerve in her body grew tense, causing her to look up when the bell on top of the front door chimed. She gasped when she found Klaus standing on the other side of the counter with a dimpled smile and his arms behind his back. He had been too fast for her senses to anticipate his arrival. She felt like her heart had come to a complete standstill, her body screaming to run and get away. It was unbelievable what a single man evoked from others by simply existing, and it didn't help that her magic allowed her to sense the power that surrounded him. It made her wonder how anyone could think it was a good idea to go against him.

"So, am I dying today?" Juniper asked, trying to keep her voice steady. And while she managed to smile and appear relaxed on her seat, her own spirit wanted to jump out of her body and escape.

"I have yet to decide," Klaus said, his smile disappearing as his lips tightened into a thin line. He turned around and went to the door. "The only reason your head is still attached to your shoulders is because I don't think Gwen will ever forgive me for killing a friend, not this time." He turned the sign of her store to say that they were closed. "So, in order for me to avoid a temperamental and pouty teenager, I have restrained myself from putting your head on a spike."

Juniper hummed, "Oh, what a gentleman."

Klaus turned back around to face her. "Now, why on earth would you help Gwen in her pursuit of doing the opposite of everything I tell her?"

"It's quite simple really," Juniper said as she stood up, folding her arms over her chest. "That girl is going to explode if you keep her locked up. Faeries are not meant to be sheltered from the world." Klaus scoffed in annoyance as he looked away from the witch. "You've isolated her. She's no different from a bird with clipped wings, Klaus."

"I do it to protect her!" Klaus argued as he glared at the brunette.

"I know that," Juniper raised her voice, but it still didn't match his. "But she is a young girl who has no life outside the walls you've built around her. She deserves to have a choice in what she wants. She has yet to live, to fall in love, to travel." She shook her head with a sigh. "You are taking all of that from her. And she's not asking for much, just that you loosen the leash a bit, which is a metaphor that I am not even supposed to use when talking about another human being."

Calming down and collecting his thoughts, Klaus breathed in and exhaled. He knew that Juniper was right, but he wasn't about to admit that. "I can't stop her, can I?" He leaned his hip against a nearby table. For so long, he thought he could give Gwen whatever she wanted and keep her happy in a safe place, but he also understood that he couldn't stop her anymore. She was growing into her own person, and that person wanted more than what he provided. "I just want her to be safe."

Juniper chuckled. "You're not a real parent until you go through the rebellious phase of a teenager and the fear of having to let go."

"You're not helping," countered Klaus. "Especially when you enable her mischief."

"I'm her friend, not her mom," she argued. "Also, faeries tend to be mischievous."

"Yet, you should have known better last night," said Klaus, his eyes narrowing.

Juniper saw what he was doing, which exasperated her. "I would never put her in any danger, Klaus. I also do not want anything from you," she explained. "We only wanted to figure out what Gloria was up to after Gwen told me about the bad feeling she got. The plan wasn't to find your weird fetish with daggers and coffins." She pointed a finger at Klaus. "I bet you have a lot of explaining to do now, huh?"

"No thanks to you, but I bet my sister will give her all of the juicy details," said Klaus, making a gesture with his hands.

Juniper's eyes widened. "You left Gwen with your sister?" she asked, frowning. "The same one who tried to kill us last night?"

"I had no choice," Klaus hissed at her. "My sister is someone who doesn't take 'no' very well. If I had told her to stay away from Gwen, she would have only been more intrigued and unpredictable. It's better when I know that they're together." He cleared his throat. "Besides, I trust my sister with Gwen more than I trust you."

Juniper gasped mockingly with a hand over her heat. "And here I thought we were connecting."

"Forgive me if I don't buy into your story about wanting Gwen's help to find your family," said Klaus, his lips pursed. "It's a bit too tragic and convenient."

"I don't care if you believe me or not," Juniper said with a shrug of her shoulders. "It's the truth. After so many years of searching for a clue as to what happened to my parents, a little spell told me that Gwen is somehow connected to them."

Klaus nodded. "Well, she's no family to you, and your DNA test proved that." At her surprised look, he smirked. "You don't think I won't find out every little thing you do when it concerns Gwen, do you?"

"Wow, you really are as paranoid as they say," huffed Juniper, feeling more awed than annoyed. "Still, all of your questions have probably been answered by Gwen and you could have killed me a while ago, but what I do wonder is why I'm still here." She tilted her head to the side. "I'm not alive because Gwen asked you not to kill me. There's something you want from me."

"When it comes to Gwen's intuition, I trust in it completely," he began to explain as he paced around the front of the establishment. "And I know Gloria isn't helping me out of the goodness of her heart, so I can deduce that she'll try to find a way to get one over me. And this brings me to this agonizing predicament." Juniper could tell that whatever he was going to say was something that physically bothered him by the scowl on his face. "I decided to listen to Gwen, so I came here to get a second opinion."

Juniper froze, her eyes wide in shock as she watched him reluctantly meet her gaze. This was the first time Klaus asked such a thing from her, since he wanted her to simply disappear from Gwen's life, though he always made it known that he'd prefer for her to die. A wide smile slowly appeared on her face, growing from ear to ear, which reminded Klaus of the Cheshire cat. "Now this is something else," she chuckled, staring at him in disbelief. "Are you asking for my help?"

"No," Klaus turned to her as he sat down on a chair at a table. "This is just a second opinion."

"You need my help," Juniper cooed as she walked over to Klaus.

"Don't make me regret this," warned Klaus, looking up at her grinning face with hardened eyes.

Juniper raised her hands in surrender before placing them on her hips. "Why the change of heart?"

"Traditional witches tend to maintain the so-called 'Balance of Nature'," he began to explain. "And although Gloria deviates a bit from that practice, she's still not one to turn her back on all of it, but you're not like any of them."

Sighing, Juniper nodded, disliking where the conversation was headed. "You mean about my magic."

"Yes." He nodded. "Unlike most witches, you prefer to be alone and do your own practice without needing to depend on the Spirits to give you their blessing for every spell you want to perform. I do wonder why that is."

"I think it has to do with the coven my parents belonged to. The only thing I've been able to find out about them is that they came from a line of pureblood witches, but they disappeared one day without a trace," Juniper said as she recalled vague memories of her mother from when she was small, but even the face was a blur when she tried to focus on what her mother's face looked like. "The magic they practiced was dark magic, which I seem to have inherited."

"Ah, the great taboo," said Klaus, now understanding her better.

"Exactly, so now you know why I don't need the Spirits, and why many witches turned me away when I was looking for answers," Juniper said with a nod of her head. "I also don't seem to suffer from the supposed side effects of my heart being corrupted and my mind being poisoned." She raised a hand and flexed her fingers, staring at her movements as she felt her power beneath her skin. "I would like to learn more about it, but I've run out of leads." She dropped her hand back to her side. "At some point, we all want to know more about ourselves, and the past is a good place to start."

"You should know that this family you're looking for may not be what you expect them to be. You could very well be better off without knowing anything about them," said Klaus, his eyes appearing to be looking at something faraway, indicating that he was lost in his mind.

"I know," Juniper sighed. She tried not to imagine who her family was, since it was better not to create expectations, but she did remember a bit of her mother. She remembered how warm and safe she felt whenever she thought about the woman who gave her life. "So, what do you need of me?" she asked, going back to what they were originally discussing.

"As you know, I broke my curse and became a hybrid," Klaus said as he stood to walk around the table, needing to be doing something as he spoke about what was frustrating him.

Juniper nodded as she sat on a chair at the table Klaus was pacing around, leaning back to watch him. "I know that part," she said. "What's the problem?"

"I can't sire more of my kind," Klaus answered, causing Juniper to frown in confusion. "We know that I can't turn a vampire into a werewolf because the werewolf gene is passed down from generation to generation through genes, so that means that I need to turn werewolves." He took a breath as he recalled the dead werewolf pack he found in the Rocky Mountains with Stefan. "The problem happened when they went into transition." He stopped pacing and turned to stare at Juniper. "They died, even after completing the steps of transition."

"So, you went to Gloria to find out what the problem is," Juniper said, connecting the dots on her own. "The fact that you're still not happy while talking about it means that she hasn't found the answer."

"Precisely," sighed Klaus. "It's the reason why I decided to listen to Gwen."

"How does Gloria plan on finding said solution?" asked Juniper, needing more details to be able to find her own answer to Klaus' problem.

"She said she needed my sister's necklace to contact the witch who created my curse, but the bloody thing is lost with no idea of where it could be," Klaus told her, deciding that he could trust Juniper with the information. He hoped she would surprise him, which would then prove Gwen was right, but then he would never hear the end of it. "I'm going over to her bar later to see if she can find it."

Juniper hummed. "It's a good plan, and it shouldn't be hard to find the necklace."

Klaus paused at this, frowning. "What do you mean?"

"Your sister wore it for whoever knows how long, which makes her the key to finding it," Juniper explained, and what she told him was what she would do herself to locate the necklace he needed to contact the witch who created his curse. "But, if you want a solution to your problem with creating more puppies like you, I can look into it."

"What's in it for you?" he asked, growing wary.

Juniper rolled her eyes in annoyance. "Nothing, really." She hummed as she thought it over before a grin appeared on her lips. "But I have to admit that having you owe me one sounds rather exciting."

"Of course," Klaus scoffed. "What is it you want?"

"Ugh," Juniper groaned as she made a face of disgust. She stood up to walk over to the front door. "You make it sound like I want to take away your favorite toy." She turned over the sign to say that her establishment was open once more. "I haven't really thought about it, but I assure you that I will try to keep it PG, so don't get pouty." She gestured for him to walk out of the store. "You can leave now. Unlike you, I can't compel away my bills."

"Fine, but you better come through," Klaus said as he strode over to the front door, standing a few inches in front of Juniper. "For your sake."

"Look, I know that I approached Gwen because I wanted answers about my family. I was so grateful when she offered to help without a second thought, which is something you need to watch out for. That girl can be too nice sometimes," she said, causing Klaus to give her a lopsided smile as he nodded in agreement. "As soon as I found out that she had no memory or encounter with a relative of mine, I thought that it was best to move on. She became my friend, and she's the closest thing I have to some semblance of family." She took a deep breath as she worked up her nerve to be nice to him after only receiving death threats every time that they saw one another, which she happily returned. "You're _her_ family, so helping you is part of the package."

"Good to know," Klaus said, turning to leave, making the bell above the door chime.

Juniper released a heavy breath as she leaned against the door, finally calming down after Klaus left. She didn't know she had been so on edge when around Klaus, but this moment reminded her of the time after she first met him when Gwen introduced them to one another and he had been ready to kill her then and there, but he spared her. Even though she had spells and safety measures against Klaus, she knew not to underestimate the power the hybrid had, as should no one.

.

"Do all women in the 21st century dress like prostitutes?" Rebekah asked out loud from within a spacious dressing room, while Gwen waited outside with many shopping bags sitting on the floor with her purse beside the divan she sat on.

Gwen winced with pursed lips at Rebekah's words, glad that the Original vampire had compelled the store owner to close for only them to use, but it prompted Gwen to stare down at her outfit. She wore a cami dress in black with a cream floral print that had a V-neckline and a maxi skirt that had a ruffled, high-low hem. The dress also had front-button closures and an elasticized waist with a self-tie closure. She had matched the outfit with cork wedges in cream with an open toe style. She also wore an ivory scarf around her neck to cover up the bruises she didn't have time to heal up.

"I don't mean you," said Rebekah.

"Okay, and it's just the fashion nowadays," Gwen said, playing around with the pearl of her necklace that peeked out from beneath her scarf.

Rebekah stepped out from behind the curtain in a black mini dress, not liking the dress after having tried it on. "You know, I got dirty looks for wearing trousers."

"Really?" Gwen asked, not convinced that Rebekah would have gotten any sour looks with how beautiful she was. "Kind of hard to imagine."

Rebekah nodded, staring at herself in a mirror. "Yes, but I could care less."

"Fashions come and go," Gwen supplied. "You might even see bell-bottoms back in style." At the blonde's confused look, she elaborated. "It was the fashion style back in the sixties. It was not a good look for anyone, in my opinion."

"And what is this music?" Rebekah asked with a scrunched-up face, her heightened senses making working against her as she tried to block the store's music. "It sounds like a cable car accident."

"Well, it's dance music," Gwen answered, her ears failing to recognize the song. "I can help you find music you might like later."

Rebekah raised an incredulous eyebrow. "People dance to this?"

Gwen shrugged her shoulders. "I think they do."

"You think?" Rebekah furrowed her eyebrows.

"I, uh," she paused and cleared her throat. "I don't really know what people dance to. I haven't really gone to a party. Well, I have, but I wasn't there for long, which I don't think it counts as having the experience of having gone to a party." She realized she was talking nonsense and stopped. "Sorry, I tend to ramble when I get nervous."

"You've never gone to a party?" asked Rebekah, her face portraying how she was at. "Don't you have friends to go out with?" She sat on the divan next to the one Gwen was using, crossing a leg over the other.

"I tried once, and it didn't end well," Gwen explained, her eyes falling to the floor as she toyed with her hands on her lap. The image of the face of a brown-haired boy with light skin complexion who had short but wavy hair and brown eyes entered her mind, but she forced herself not to remember. "You've known Nik for far longer than I have. I think you know what happens when his rules aren't followed."

Rebekah hummed, frowning as she stared at the young girl. She understood what Gwen meant in its entirety. Living with Klaus was no easy thing, and it felt like one couldn't live their own life outside of the boundaries he set. "I do," she said, gaining Gwen's attention. "More than you know, and I hope you never get to where I am." She smirked. "You're lucky he can't dagger you."

This reminded Gwen of what she had tried asking Klaus. "Does he have all of your family in coffins?"

"Apparently." Said Rebekah, breathing deeply. "It seems that Elijah was the last one to join us."

"How many of you are there?" asked Gwen.

"Well, there's Finn," Rebekah began as she leaned back against the divan's back, "he's the oldest. Then there's the noble Elijah, next is Nik, the mischievous Kol comes after, and finally…" she paused to gesture to herself, "yours truly."

Gwen's eyes were wide. "And they're all daggered?"

Rebekah nodded. "Yes, but this isn't the first time for any of us, except for Finn. He's been daggered for almost 900 years."

"What?" Gwen gasped, finding it hard to believe that the man had been in that state for so long, and who knew when he would awaken.

"My brother Finn was not very happy with our status as 'bloodsuckers'–as he so fondly called us–which was always a chore to listen to," said Rebekah. "When we were daggered for the first time, Nik decided to leave him asleep a bit longer." Her eyes became downcast, managing to push back the guilt trying to claw its way back to the forefront of her mind. "Time went by, and it didn't cross our minds to wake him."

Gwen stared at Rebekah, taking note of how the vampire composed herself with such ease as the emotions quickly shifted. She saw the guilt in the blonde's eyes, but it was a flitting thing, which she recognized as the ability to better manage emotions, something that all vampires were able to do. Gwen figured that it was probably the only way that vampires could go on living without letting their emotions drown them as the years passed.

Clearing her throat, Rebekah broke Gwen out of her thoughts. "So," said the smiling vampire, "how did you and Nik meet?"

"He raised me," Gwen answered, causing Rebekah to become confused once more. "Both of my parents are dead, and I have no living relatives. I was a few days old when he took me in."

Rebekah opened her mouth to say something, but then she closed it as she thought about what was best to say. "Are you sure you have no one?" she asked, taking care of how she phrased what she wanted to know, since she didn't want to directly ask the girl if Klaus had a hand in the deaths of her parents. "I mean, you can't be completely alone."

"Well, my dad was human. He died before I was born," she said with a sigh, remembering how Klaus had looked for him as a favor to her, only to find that he had passed away. "My mom was a faerie, and Nik told me she died in the superstorm of 1994. He said he found me and my mom, but he couldn't save her."

"And he kept you?" asked Rebekah, surprised by what she was hearing about her brother.

Gwen nodded, slightly smiling. "I know it's something he wouldn't do unless he got something out of it, but he still took care of me. I still don't know why." She shrugged her shoulders. "He could have left me in someone else's care or in some orphanage, but he didn't. He has never asked anything from me." She huffed out a laugh. "He was rough around the edges and paranoid and controlling, but I don't think I'll be able to ever repay him for everything he's done for me."

"I think that it's the other way around," said Rebekah.

Gwen raised an eyebrow at this. "What do you mean?"

Rebekah shook her head with a kind smile. "Forget I said anything. Let's get back to why we're here." She stood up and twirled to show Gwen the dress she forgot she was trying on. "So, what do you think?"

"Uh," Gwen hummed as she looked at the dress. "I wouldn't wear it."

"You're quite honest, and I can tell you're not lying," said Rebekah. "I like that. You haven't led me astray all day."

"Well, I have found that it's quite hard for me to lie," said Gwen.

"Oh, yes." Rebekah smiled. "Faeries can't lie, which means that can't."

"I _can_," Gwen told her. "It's just that I answer honestly by default without knowing. If I want to lie, I have to be prepared to do it."

"Can I help you ladies with anything?" a woman dressed in a black dress with blonde hair tied back in a ponytail asked after having approached Rebekah and Gwen.

Rebekah looked at the woman with a tight smile, locking eyes with the other blonde. "Now that you mention it, we'd like some champagne, so bring us a bottle and two glasses. It's getting a bit dreary around here."

"I don't drink," Gwen said. "I'm underage."

"Oh, don't be a downer. Just one glass won't kill you," Rebekah grinned at Gwen before sending the saleswoman away. "I'm not going to drink on my own. Besides, this will be practice for when we go to parties."

Gwen smiled at this, taking the glass of champagne the saleswoman brought for her and Rebekah. "All right."

"This is a girl's day out," Rebekah said as she walked over to Gwen to make a toast. "Now, here's to enjoying ourselves."

* * *

**End of chapter!**

**I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter, and remember to speak your minds without fear in the reviews. Also, remember to Fave or Follow to your hearts' content.**

**See you soon for the next chapter!**


	4. true colors

**Hello, all! I am happy to present another chapter for you all to hopefully enjoy in these hard times. I am finding a rhythm with updating, which I hope to maintain. I thank you guys for the continued support. Also, I would like to inform you guys that I am in the works of organizing my original story to post it again, but it might take a while, so please be patient with me.**

**Now let's respond to those awesome reviews:**

**_-GhostGypsy_: Thanks for the support! Yes, I plan for this little weakness of hers to be exploited later on. I am pretty nervous on writing her first interaction with Kol, but I already have many plans for them. Also, the many changes I have planned will involve a lot of drama and such that I hope you guys enjoy. And yes, Daddy Klaus is very protective, but their relationship will be shown as the story progresses.**

**_-Love . Fiction . 2020_: I am so glad you did! Thanks!**

**_-Fidjie_: Thanks for the support and love! I am glad you're liking the new Klaus/Gwen relationship, since it's a bit of a struggle and a lot of fun to write. And I will be posting the original story once I am done making sure I have all chapters. Also, please stay safe as best as you can.**

**_-xenocanaan_: And I hope not to disappoint. Lots of love for you!**

**Disclaimer: ****I own nothing belonging to the Vampire Diaries and claim no ownership over anything pertaining to it. I only own my characters and whatever else that is not from the show.**

* * *

_true colors_

.

.

.

Gwen was feeling a bit uncertain with the decision she made, but she still mustered up a smile as she looked down at the smooth strands of her hair that fell over her shoulders in soft waves that shined under the sunlight. "You really think it looks good?" she asked Rebekah as the vampire walked beside her. Both girls had left their shopping bags at the hotel where Rebekah was staying after receiving a call from Klaus to meet up with him at Gloria's bar. "I've never done something like this before."

"That's exactly why it looks good," Rebekah said as she smiled at Gwen's hair. "You need to be more confident in what you want. It'll help you get out of the shell my brother shoved you in."

The young girl hummed. "He means well."

Rebekah huffed out a laugh. "Nik always means well, but that doesn't mean that what he does is right." She grinned as she saw they were nearing Gloria's bar. "I can't wait to see the look on his face when he gets a look at the new you."

"Yeah," Gwen mumbled as her eyes landed on their destination, feeling a bit nervous.

Once they stood in front of the entrance of Gloria's bar, Rebekah opened the door and stepped inside with Gwen following behind her with hesitant steps. The young girl still felt a bit uncomfortable entering the establishment, always getting a bad feeling. The bar was empty with the chairs placed on top of the tables, and the only people inside were Klaus and Gloria. While Klaus was behind the bar serving himself a drink, Gloria finished placing some candles around her grimoire that was placed on top of a table.

"There are my two favorite girls," Klaus greeted as he finally lifted his head to look at Rebekah and Gwen, but his eyes focused on the latter when he saw her hair. He had not expected the sudden change. "And what do we have here?" he asked as he walked around the bar with his drink in hand.

Rebekah smiled as she walked ahead of Gwen, standing in front of Klaus. "Doesn't she look nice?" She glanced back at Gwen. "I helped her. It's so fascinating how hair salons have evolved when they used to look like a mad scientist's lab." She walked around her brother to head over to the bar, whispering to him, "I like this one."

Klaus stopped his sister by grabbing her arm. "I thought I told you to take her home."

"Did you?" hummed Rebekah, pretending to try and remember her conversation with Klaus. "I must've heard wrong. I really haven't gotten the hang of mobile phones." She pulled her arm from his grip and went on her way.

Klaus took a deep breath before he looked at Gwen as she approached him with a small, timid smile. "So, what do you think?" she asked him, her hands combing through her long bangs that were swept to the left. Her tresses that used to be a dark shade of brown were now lightened with golden blonde highlights all over her head, the wavy strands falling to the middle of her back in soft waves. The change went along well with her olive complexion and hazel eyes. "I've never done this before, so I gave Rebekah full control."

"You always look beautiful. The look suits you," he told her, taking a sip of his drink. "But I recommend you think twice before trusting my sister in such matters. I mean," he paused and looked to where Rebekah was now sitting on top of the bar, "she doesn't usually have good taste in anything, so this is a miracle."

"I heard that!" Rebekah spoke up before she watched as Gloria sat at the table with her large grimoire now open on a page and the candles having been lighted. "Where are we with my necklace?"

"I haven't even started, sweetheart," Gloria replied with slight exasperation, moving her arms to have her hands hover over her grimoire. "You might want to exercise some patience. This could take a while."

"Splendid," Rebekah huffed before she turned her attention to Klaus. "And where's Stefan?"

"We met up with some delightful girls for lunch," Klaus answered with smirk, the meaning behind it not lost on anyone. "He needed a bit of fresh air." He grinned when he heard the front door of the bar open and close. "There he is," he said as he looked over Gwen's head to see Stefan enter.

Stefan nodded at Klaus with a tight smile, waving at a smiling Rebekah. The young vampire's nose picked up on a unique scent that had his eyes landing on Gwen, his eyebrows furrowing when he failed to recognize her. His mouth became dry just by staring at the smooth skin of her neck and collarbone, causing him to gulp down the thirst that was slowly growing. He could almost feel his fangs become sharp, but he managed to control himself by shaking his head and tearing his gaze away from Gwen for a moment. "Hi," he greeted with a forced smile and tense posture. "I don't believe we've met."

"Ah, yes." Klaus grinned as he stood beside Gwen while facing Stefan, keeping a careful eye on the young vampire. "Stefan Salvatore, I'd like you to meet Gwendolyn Moone," he began as he wrapped an arm around Gwen's shoulders to pull her close to his side. "Lyn, this is Stefan Salvatore, the friend I mentioned before."

Gwen gave Klaus a pointed look. "You're letting me meet your friend?" she asked with a raised eyebrow, receiving a huff as a response. Before he could say anything witty, she turned back to Stefan and extended her hand for the vampire to shake. "You can call me Gwen."

Stefan's brows were still furrowed as he shook Gwen's hand, the feel of her skin making it hard for him to stop thinking about what her blood would taste like. "Nice to meet you." He glanced at Klaus after releasing the young girl's hand, his eyes shifting between the hybrid and girl standing in front of him. "How do you and Klaus know each other?"

Just as Gwen was about to answer, Klaus spoke up. "Someone I picked up some years ago. Her magic is rather special, so I couldn't resist myself." The fact that his answer was vague only made Stefan curious about the girl.

She knew he didn't mean his words, so Gwen didn't take them to heart. No one could know about the nature of their relationship, since she knew that it was something that could be used against him somehow. "I do some favors for him every now and then," she told Stefan, offering him a kind smile. She wasn't technically lying, since he did ask her for simple things from time to time, so the words flowed out of her mouth with ease.

"Another witch?" asked Stefan, glancing at Klaus.

"Still learning the craft," answered Klaus, remaining vague.

Stefan glanced at Gloria from where they stood some distance behind the witch. "What's she doing?"

"She's failing," Klaus said sneeringly, taking another sip from his bourbon.

"It's hard to find something when you don't have anything to go on," Gloria retorted, keeping her eyes closed as she focused on the chanting she recited on her mind.

"Then use me. I only wore it for a thousand years," Rebekah piped up as she slid from the bar's counter, walking over to the table Gloria was at.

"See?" Gloria took a deep breath to calm herself, growing more and more annoyed with the vampires occupying her bar and her time. "Now this one," she gestured toward Rebekah with a wave of her hand, "offers a solution." She waited for the blonde vampire to make herself comfortable on the edge of the table. "All right, give me your hand, sweetheart." The Original vampire did as the witch asked, her hand held between both of Gloria's, while everyone else watched on.

"She's, uh," Stefan began, clearing his throat, "she's looking for the necklace, huh?"

"Yes." Klaus' eyes narrowed on Gloria as he finished his drink and left the empty glass on top of the bar. He recalled what Juniper told him earlier in the day, so he needed to keep a close eye on her. "Let's hope that she can finally show her worth." He grinned when he saw the witch's shoulders become tense at his words before they relaxed.

Gloria took a deep breath and ignored everyone around her, focusing on Rebekah and the aura that surrounded the vampire as she searched for that faint connection that led to a hazy image of the necklace appearing in her mind. "I can sense something," she mumbled, keeping her eyes closed and a tight grip on Rebekah's hand. Once she saw a perfect image of the necklace that they were looking for, but everything else was still a bit blurry, which had her reinforcing her link to the necklace with a spell. "_Anta Cotis Syrum, Anta Cotis Syrum_," she whispered, and now she could finally hear and see everything around the necklace with clarity.

While Gwen stood beside Klaus, Stefan took a step closer to Gloria. The young vampire had to keep his nerves in check as he realized that he was running out of time in figuring out a way to find out what–or who–Klaus had been running from back in the 1920s, which had been the cause of why Klaus had erased any memory and evidence that they knew one another from his mind. He was hoping that Gloria wouldn't be able to find anything, given that the necklace they were looking for still hung around the neck of the most important person in his life. Also, his own life depended on Gloria being unsuccessful.

Gloria dropped Rebekah's hand with a sigh before glancing up at Klaus. "I found it," she breathed, causing Stefan's undead heart to drop.

"Really?" Klaus hummed, glancing at Gwen, seeing her mouth 'bad vibe'.

"So where is it?" Rebekah asked Gloria, desperate to get her hands on her necklace.

"It doesn't work like that, doll," Gloria replied to an annoyed Rebekah. "There's a girl with her friends–"

"Yes, a dead girl with dead friends, if I don't get my necklace back," Rebekah hissed as she cut off the witch.

Gloria sighed. "Well, I'll have to dive back in to get the details."

"So, dive," Klaus said as he walked over to Gloria, leaning his hands on the table while leering down at her. "What's the problem?"

"I need more time," Gloria told him, matching his gaze. When he refused to budge and remained staring down at her, she tried to shoo him away. "And space. You're harshing my ju-ju."

Klaus shrugged with pursed lips. "We can wait."

"I'm sure you can, but that's not what I asked," said Gloria, looking up at Klaus with unwavering eyes.

"I don't see why you can't do it now," Klaus argued, his frustration rising.

Gloria scowled at him. "Like I said, I need more time."

Both Gwen and Stefan noticed the tense atmosphere growing between Klaus and Gloria, neither backing down, but they knew that Klaus could lose his temper and then Gloria would lose either her heart or her head. The hybrid was beginning to think that trusting Gloria with his problem was a mistake, and he could sense that she was keeping from him more than she was telling them.

"Hey," Stefan called as he approached Klaus, trying to diffuse the tension before it escalated any further. "You know," he whispered into Klaus' ear as he placed an arm across the older immortal's back, "why don't we just come back later. I'm hungry anyway." He saw that Klaus still refused to move. "I'll let you pick who we eat." He patted Klaus' back before making his way to the door.

Klaus and Rebekah shared a look, and they both knew that they couldn't trust neither Gloria nor Stefan. Centuries of watching mortals taught them what to look out for regarding a person's body language, signs that would help them tell when a person was being deceitful or acting in a strange way. It didn't go unnoticed by Klaus and Rebekah that Gloria was keeping something from them and Stefan was not very eager to locate the necklace, but they opted to leave it be for the time being. Rebekah hopped off the table and went ahead of Klaus to follow behind Stefan, whereas her brother approached Gwen to grab her arm and pull her along with him to exit the establishment. Gloria watched the group leave and sighed in relief, being now left with a rather difficult decision to make.

Once they were outside of the bar, Klaus and Gwen stood in front of Rebekah and Stefan. "Well, that was a waste of time," the hybrid grumbled.

"Maybe she just needs some time to find it. I mean, who knows where that thing could be," Stefan supplied, his arms crossed over his chest. "And it's perfect for us." He smirked at the siblings. "I'm hungrier by the second."

"Well, I am a bit famished from all the retail therapy," said Rebekah.

"We ate almost two hours ago." Klaus grinned at Stefan. "How can you still be hungry?"

Stefan shrugged his shoulders. "It's been a long day and it's not close to being over."

"Try being related to her," Klaus chuckled as he nodded at a scowling Rebekah.

Gwen rolled her eyes at Klaus. "Really, Nik?"

"You're being mean," Rebekah hissed at her brother, but she was surprised when Stefan laughed. "And why are _you_ being mean? You used to love me."

Klaus chuckled as he placed his hands on his hips. "It's been ninety years, Rebekah. Give him a minute."

Rebekah frowned at Klaus. "Why are you taking his side?"

"Because, my dear sister, I feel pity for any man who doesn't give you what you want," Klaus taunted his fuming sister.

"Will you stop making me out to be a brat? I am not a brat!" Rebekah argued, controlling herself from yelling any louder at her smirking brother.

"A thousand years of life experience says otherwise," Klaus almost sang, receiving a nudge to his side from Gwen's elbow.

"You know, bullying your little sister is not very attractive," Gwen scolded Klaus, but he still chuckled.

Stefan huffed out a laugh, his eyes landing on Klaus. "Well, you're no picnic, either," he told the hybrid, watching the latter lose his smile. "I mean, I've only spent one summer with you and I feel like I want to blow my head off." Both Rebekah and Gwen laughed at this, while Klaus became impassive.

"Fantastic," said a smiling Rebekah.

"Join the club," said Gwen, receiving a halfhearted glare from Klaus.

"So, how about that drink?" Stefan asked the siblings.

Klaus hummed before glancing down at Gwen. "You should go with Rebekah." He looked up and shared a quick but pointed look with his sister. "I've had my fill and I need to walk Lyn back home."

Rebekah nodded before looping an arm through Stefan's, pulling him with her before he could say anything. "So, who did you have in mind?" she asked Stefan, leading him away from Klaus and Gwen.

Klaus waited until Rebekah and Stefan were at a far enough distance, wanting some privacy to talk to Gwen freely. "We're going to pay your witch a visit," he told Gwen as he began to walk in the direction of Juniper's store.

Gwen frowned, completely caught off guard. "What?" She hurried her steps and matched his pace. "We're going to see June?"

"Yes, so call her," Klaus said, determined to get his answers. "I am done with giving others the benefit of the doubt."

.

"You know," Juniper began as she placed her grimoire on a table she sat at, "I'm gonna have to start charging you guys for every hour you have me close the store. This is the second time today, not even past noon." She shared a smile with Gwen, who sat across from her, but then an idea came to her. "Oh! I know what favor I want from you," she said to Klaus as he stopped his pacing to stare down at her. "You can pay or compel away the store's debt."

Klaus raised an eyebrow at her, not having expected that request. "That's all?"

Juniper nodded. "Trust me, this would be a life saver." She glanced at Gwen. "I love what you did to the hair."

Gwen smiled as she reached up to stroke her wavy tresses over her shoulder. "Thanks."

"How long have you had this store?" Klaus asked offhandedly.

"Well, I moved here around two and a half years ago," Juniper hummed as she thought about when she moved to Chicago. "The actual owner of the store is a sweet old lady who took me in and left me her apartment upstairs. She is currently enjoying her retirement in Florida, leaving me to manage the place." She flipped a page in her grimoire, looking for a certain spell. "Technically, it's not my store 'cause it's still in Missus Bixby's name, but she left it all to me, since she has no children to inherit."

"That was nice of her," Gwen said, having already heard the story.

"Or crazy," said Klaus. "That poor woman left a mental case in charge of her legacy."

Juniper glanced at him, smirking. "Well, I've raised her income with a bit of magical help. With my herbs, people who drink the coffee from here are always attracted to this place, so they'll be tempted to visit more frequently."

Klaus grinned, finding himself impressed. "Now that is quite the strategy."

"Thank you." Juniper hummed for a bit more until she finally found the page she was looking for. "Here it is. The spell that will help me look into that necklace of yours." She chuckled. "You know, I can't believe there's this much trouble for a tiny thing."

"Well, this 'tiny thing' is an item that the Original witch often wore and used for her spells," Klaus remarked as he stood beside the table. "What do you need?"

"Not much, except for one thing," Juniper said as she placed her hands on the smooth pages of her grimoire, looking up at Klaus. "Are you and the Original witch blood related or something?"

Klaus made a groan within his throat, his posture tensing as he folded his arms over his chest. "Is that important?"

"Well, you didn't bring your sister, so that makes things a bit difficult for me," Juniper explained, noticing Klaus' change in demeanor, so she knew not to push him too much. "I can use your connection with her and your sister to locate the necklace, but I need to know what relationship you guys have to know what I'm looking for."

Gwen glanced up at Klaus, her eyes softening. "You can tell her, Nik."

"She was my mother," Klaus breathed out heavily, seeming to have taken a hefty weight from his shoulders. It appeared that he had yet to believe he spoke words he himself dreaded to say out loud. "She was the witch who created the vampire species."

Juniper's mouth hung open in shock, eyes wide with shock. "Holy shit!"

"June," Gwen sighed.

"Your mother turned you and the rest of your family into vampires?" Juniper asked, still unable to come to terms with what Klaus told her. "I mean, I knew the Original witch had to have some sort of connection to you, but I thought she was like a distant relative or something. I never imagined she was your mother." She looked to Gwen with accusing eyes. "You knew about this and didn't think to tell me?"

Gwen hunched her shoulders, dropping her eyes to her fidgeting hands. "Well, I promised Nik I wouldn't say anything."

"And I would appreciate it if you did the same," Klaus told Juniper with a heated glare, his tone of voice already telling her that it was more of a warning than a friendly request.

Juniper raised her hands in surrender. "Fine by me, but this makes things a whole lot easier for me."

"How so?" asked Klaus.

"Gwen, go fetch me a world map I keep behind the counter, please," Juniper said to the young girl, the latter standing up to get what the witch asked for. She then turned her attention to Klaus. "Now I can just use your blood that you share with people who were owners of the necklace to pinpoint its location." She sighed as she turned back to her grimoire, picking up an empty vial from within her bag that was beside her spell book. "This should take no time at all."

Klaus huffed. "And why would Gloria not come up with this?"

"Maybe we'll get an answer to that when we know where the necklace is," said Juniper.

"Here you go!" Gwen appeared with the map, struggling a bit to open the large parchment before placing it on the table with a bit difficulty as she tried to smooth it over. "What now?"

Juniper simply presented the empty vial to Klaus. "A bit of your blood, please."

Klaus took the vial and lifted his hand to his mouth, his irises becoming yellow as they were surrounded by blackened sclera with protruded veins under his eyes. He opened his mouth to reveal his sharpened canines before biting into his palm, allowing his blood to drip into the vial and the floor. Once the vial was filled halfway, he took his hand back and thanked Gwen when she offered him a napkin to clean up his hand that had already healed.

"Thanks for that," Juniper huffed, scowling at the blood stains on the floor. She took the vial Klaus returned to her and turned to stare down at the map of the world. "Now, I'll get a location, but I'm going to also try to see who has it."

"That's good," said Gwen.

Klaus and Gwen stood around the table, watching as Juniper poured Klaus' blood around the center of the map. She placed the vial to the side and closed her eyes while taking a deep breath. "_Lorg an t-seud-muineil_," she began to chant, and the blood responded with movement, "_agus seall dhomh an neach-caitheamh_." From the small puddle of blood that was covering the Atlantic Ocean, a thin line of the dark liquid stretched towards the state of Virginia. Juniper's eyes remained closed as the spell caused images to flash through her mind, showing her an endless forest before showing her a sign that she quickly read. She then saw a bustling town with many people before landing on what she assumed was the necklace Klaus was looking for, seeing that a young girl was wearing it. She gasped as her eyes flew open, her body jumping a bit as she settled back in her body, staring down at the map.

"June?" Gwen stepped closer to the witch, placing a hand on the woman's shoulder. "You okay?"

"Did you find the necklace?" asked Klaus.

Gwen gave Klaus a disapproving look. "Can you give her a minute?"

"It's all right." Juniper wave off Gwen's worry before looking up to lock eyes with Klaus. "Does 'Mystic Falls' mean anything to you?"

Klaus' face turned sour at the mention of the one place he thought he would never have to hear from again, but then suspicion took over as he thought about the possibility that Stefan could know about Rebekah's necklace. "Bloody hell," he almost growled as he began to pace around the table, alarming both girls.

"What is it, Nik?" Gwen asked, her eyes following Klaus' tense posture.

"Back in the twenties, Rebekah and I spent some time with a vampire who became quite a dear friend of mine," Klaus began to explain as he stood in front of both girls. "He then struck up a relationship with my sister."

"What does that have to do with your lost jewelry?" asked Juniper.

"Rebekah always wore the damn necklace, so he always saw it. How could he not?" Klaus mumbled the last part to himself.

"Okay, then I'll ask a different question to better understand," said Juniper. "What does this friend of yours have anything to do with your problem?"

"Because that friend is Stefan Salvatore and he's from Mystic Falls. It's from where I picked him up after I sacrificed his bloody doppelgänger of a girlfriend to break my curse," Klaus ranted, his eyes hardening with growing anger as he slowly began to piece together a theory. He stared at Juniper. "Did you see who has the necklace now?"

Juniper raised her hand to make a so-so gesture with her hand, her lips pursed. "It was a bit blurry, but I saw that it was with a girl around Gwen's age. She had brown hair and brown eyes, but I couldn't get much else."

Just by the description Juniper gave him, Klaus could no longer chalk everything up to pure coincidence, not when the traits matched those of the Petrova woman he had to kill in order for him to become a hybrid. "If the necklace is in Mystic Falls, then I can't really believe that Stefan has not seen it."

"Too much of a coincidence," Juniper said as she crossed her arms over her chest. "And Gloria probably knows more than she led you to believe."

"Exactly," sighed Klaus, growing furious at the thought of someone he considered a friend once upon a time lying to him.

Gwen stepped closer to Klaus. "What are you going to do?"

The conversation was cut short when Klaus' phone began to ring, prompting him to reach into his jacket's inner pocket to pull out the ringing device. He stared at the screen and found that it was his siter calling him, so he answered and placed the phone to his ear. "Yes, sister?"

"_Hello, darling brother_," Rebekah said, which Klaus found that it was too sweet of a greeting.

"Why do I feel like I am not going to like what you're going to say?" Klaus said, preparing himself for bad news.

Rebekah hummed from the other end of the line. "_Well, you see, I believe that my sweet Stefan has given me the slip. I also haven't the faintest idea as to where I should go_."

"Hang tight," Klaus told her. "I'll come get you after I take care of a few lose ends." He ended the call and turned back to face Juniper and Gwen. "Now, who wants to help me clean house?"

.

Ditching a bored Original vampire with whom he had a romantic relationship was no easy fit for Stefan, but he somehow managed to do so by convincing Rebekah that he needed some time to himself when he reminded her of his ritual of writing names on walls. He and Rebekah had been feasting on girls in the same warehouse Klaus was using to store his coffins, which he was tempted to open, but not with Rebekah there watching him. She still hadn't looked convinced when he left, but he had to take the chance when Klaus wasn't breathing down his neck to do whatever was necessary to keep his loved ones safe.

Before anything else, he needed to ensure that there wouldn't be anything that would lead Klaus back to Mystic Falls, which was why he returned to Gloria's bar. He entered the establishment and spotted Gloria by the bar, so he approached her with wary steps, though he imagined that she had already sensed his presence.

"There you are," Gloria said as she stood behind the bar to look over the many bottles of liquor, giving him her back.

"Thought you were resting," Stefan countered as he approached the bar.

Gloria smirked at Stefan. "Well, now we both have a secret."

"What did you see?" Stefan asked her, huffing when he realized he was a bit too direct.

The witch chuckled as she turned to him, leaning her elbows on the counter that separated her from the vampire. "It's what I heard that's interesting," she said, watching him pour himself a glass of whiskey. "You know, the girls with the necklace, they were talking about you."

"Yet you didn't tell Klaus," Stefan stated as he leaned his side against the bar, frowning with his head slightly tilted to the side. "Why?"

"'Cause I wouldn't help that hybrid half-breed with anything," Gloria scoffed, going back to check that every bottle behind the bar was in the right place. "He already has quite an advantage with a half-breed of his own. I don't plan on adding more to his arsenal."

Stefan frowned, taking a sip of his drink before he asked, "What other half-breed?"

Gloria chuckled as she glanced at him. "Tell me you didn't fall for that cheap explanation of his about that girl Rebekah brought here." Due to the look of confusion still present on his face, she elaborated. "Gwen is not a witch, she's a hybrid but of a different kind. She's half-human and half-faerie."

Stefan's eyes widened at this, having not expected that. "I thought faeries went extinct."

"That's what everyone still thinks," said Gloria, inching closer to him. "It seems that she's the last one to have fae blood running through her veins. There can be many other descendants of faeries all around us but procreating with humans dulls the bloodline. A faerie half-breed still has enormous value that is priceless, but if she were to have children with anyone who is not a faerie then they would lose their connection to their faerie heritage."

"How does Klaus have one?" asked Stefan, now understanding why the young girl had smelled so enticing when he met her. Last time he heard about a faerie was many decades ago when a vampire was bragging about having drank the blood of probably one of the last few faeries in the world. "I've heard of many people trying to get their hands on one, but there's been no trace of them. Their numbers dwindled through the years."

"I haven't the faintest idea how that man came about one," Gloria said as she shrugged her shoulders. "I've tried digging for information, but Klaus is too paranoid. If he had caught a whiff of me trying to get too close to Gwen, he would have chopped my head off in a second." She shook her head. "He's too protective of her, which I find abnormal for him."

Humming, Stefan took note of that for another time. "And what about the necklace?" he asked her, deciding to get back to what needs priority at the moment.

"Well, the necklace Klaus wants is a talisman from the Original witch herself, which holds a lot less value than the faerie half-breed, but I'll take what I can get," she explained. "I want it."

Stefan nodded as he downed his drink in one gulp. "Well, I'm sorry." He gave her a small smile, leaving the empty glass on the counter before he began to take his leave. "I can't help you."

"Don't be difficult," Gloria said, stopping him from taking another step toward the door. "You know," she began as she walked around the bar to stand on the other side, wiping a rag over the counter to clean the wood. "I'd hate to have to tell Klaus what a liar his sidekick is."

Stefan didn't really have many options. Gloria knew that he had lied to Klaus, so he needed to take care of that. He couldn't risk being found out now, not when he was close to figuring out who Klaus had been running from back in the 1920s, so he was left with the choice of silencing the problem. He rotated a shoulder before he whipped around to rush at Gloria with supernatural speed. He was only a step away from her before an unseen force weighed heavy on his head, stopping him in his tracks. He lifted his hands to touch his temples, trying to fight through the growing pain that made it feel like his brain was going to explode.

"Guess I've got to get it out of you the hard way, huh?" Gloria sighed as she watched Stefan grunt before he dropped to the floor unconscious.

The white-haired witch was now annoyed that she had more work to do before Klaus caught wind of what she was doing. Having to move the limp vampire on top of a table was a struggle, but she managed. She also added a paralysis spell to keep him in place. She just had to speed things up, if she wanted to get the location of the necklace. Now, to get what she wanted from the youngest Salvatore, she had to prepare the room for the spell she needed to delve into the vampire's mind. After completely closing her bar and the windows to shroud the establishment in darkness and cut out the outside world, she lit candles all over the floor with a smaller table near the one Stefan was held to with many ingredients she would need for her spell. Gloria disappeared to a backroom in search of large bowls, placing one beneath each of Stefan's arms that went over the edge of the table.

Stefan gasped awake and tried to lift himself up from the table, only to find out that his body was being held down by an invisible force that felt like gravity had dropped twice his own mass on him. He tried to fight against his restraints time and time again to no avail, which caused a sheen of perspiration coating his skin. "What is this?" he groaned as he tried to move his arms, but they remained unresponsive to his demands. He looked around the dimly lit establishment, finding himself shirtless. "Why can't I move?"

"Relax," she told him as she picked up a knife from the small table before approaching the vampire's right side. "It's nothing major, just a little paralysis spell." She placed a hand on his right arm and placed the tip of the knife on his skin, tearing open a line on his forearm, which allowed his blood to drip into the recipient she had placed below his arm. "Just got to get the information out of your pretty little head." She sighed as she walked to his left side and did the same to his left forearm. "You know," she mused, ignoring his shouts of pain, "witches nowadays, they're into that new age stuff, but I'm a little more old school voodoo." She went back to the small table and dropped the knife to pick up little iron hooks with plyers, showing them to him. "This will stop that pesky healing."

Stefan began to pant as he watched her approach his arms, screaming when she placed the hooks into his healing wounds to keep them open. "I won't tell you anything," he growled at her with a furious gaze before he screamed when she placed another hook into his other arm. He was beginning to feel a bit dizzy, managing to remain conscious as he stared at the ceiling.

"You don't have to," Gloria said with a shrug of her shoulders, noticing that there was vapor rising from the blood in the bowls. "You feel that?" she asked him, dropping the plyers on the table. "That's your essence. It's your spirit. It lets me make a connection. Herbs help, too." She walked toward the table, picking up an herb that she rubbed between her hands. "Diviners, sage, witch hazel, but my personal favorite," she paused as she went back to Stefan, smirking down at him, "vervain." She placed her hands on his chest and his skin began to burn, which had him screaming at the pain.

A few moments passed before Gloria released a heavy sigh when she couldn't break through his mind, even with the ingredients she was using to enhance her magic. The vervain should have been enough to weaken his mind and allow her access to his memories, but she found that she would need more than just vervain to break through his defense, so she pulled her hands from his chest, which allowed Stefan to breathe a sigh of temporary relief when his chest was no longer burning and there wasn't any prodding to his mind. Gloria walked back to the table, looking around the items on it.

"You enjoying yourself?" Stefan hissed at her.

"I wouldn't have to, but you refuse to tell me where the necklace is," Gloria argued as she found some red powder that she began to rub on her hands. "I need that thing. It can be powerful enough to channel the magic I need to send that hybrid packing." She pursed her lips as she thought about something else. "I would prefer the heart of a faerie, but here we are."

Stefan frowned at this, remembering what he heard about faeries throughout the years. "So, it's true that getting the heart of a faerie boosts a witch's power?" While he tried to figure out how to escape, he would at least get information out of her.

"Oh, yes." Gloria nodded. "Faerie blood has so much potential. It can open limitless possibilities for a witch, like being able to perform any spell and have no equal in power. On the other hand, a vampire will find unimaginable bliss." She tilted her head to the side. "It's because of this pursuit for all faeries that they were nearly wiped out from the earth, except for the one under Klaus' protection. Being half-human helps her stay out of the radar."

"I thought that they lose their value if they're not pure," panted Stefan, his intent being on buying himself more time to keep her out of his mind.

"No, I said that a half-breed still has value," said Gloria. "The part of them that is faerie is still pure and priceless, especially her heart."

"And Klaus has her, so you can't get your hands on the heart," he stated, trying to keep the redundant conversation going.

"I'm impressed by your attempts to stall for time, but I need to get this done before Klaus decides to drop by," she told Stefan, chuckling. "I need you to let go, honey." She placed her hands on his chest once more, her hands that burned his skin making a sizzling sound, eliciting screams from him. "There you go," she said as she closed her eyes, finally breaking through his resistance. She was suddenly slammed with many images of moments that Stefan spent with a girl she recognized as the one he loved, even seeing him give her the necklace Klaus was after. "There's the girl with the necklace." He screamed as he tried to resist her pushing into his mind. "You love her." She could feel his strong emotions, especially the love he felt for the girl. "You'd do anything for her, and you have." She frowned. "A lot of darkness, a lot of guilt. All to keep her away from Klaus." Now this made her curious. "Why would he be interested in one girl?"

"Don't do this," Stefan gasped, sweat trickling down his skin. He was growing weaker with every memory Gloria fought to see. "Please, don't."

Gloria only needed to push one last time to see what he was trying to keep from her. Her eyes snapped open after seeing Stefan's memories of the ritual. "She's the doppelgänger." She took her hands off his chest. "She's supposed to be dead, and that's why Klaus can't make hybrids, isn't it?" She laughed to herself, finally having found the answers Klaus wanted, which placed her in a good position.

"Well, this is creepy," a familiar voice to Stefan's ears said from behind Gloria.

Frowning, Gloria turned around to be met with the same face she saw through Stefan's memories. Before the witch could do anything, her own knife was plunged into her neck. The witch dropped to the floor as she struggled to breathe when blood poured into her windpipe, but she was soon dead.

Stefan's eyes landed on a smirking Katherine, who said, "Maybe you do need my help, after all."

* * *

_**Rough translation (Scottish-Gaelic to English):**_

_**Lorg an t-seud-muineil agus seall dhomh an neach-caitheamh.**__**–**__**Locate the necklace and show me the wearer.**_

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**End of chapter!**

**I hope you guys enjoyed and will continue to do so. Remember to share your opinions in the Reviews, Fave and Follows. Also,remember to stay safe!**

**See you guys in the next chapter!**


	5. the remnant

**Hello, all! I know it's been a while, but with everything that's been going on with the pandemic, I have been getting work done at home, which just piles on, but whatever. I hope you are all staying safe and careful out there. Now, I will be either updating every week or every two weeks if I fail to post within a week, so that is how things are gonna be.**

**So, on to the reviews' response:**

**-_GhostGypsy_: I am glad to be portraying Rebekah so well for you, since I get nervous when writing characters with established personalities. I also love her character and always looked forward to seeing more of her, so we'll be seeing a lot of her for quite some time. Thanks for the support.**

**-_xenocanaan_: Well, she couldn't be a secret forever, LOL. I just want the reveal of what she is to be as organic as possible and not just say it out loud or people guessing. Thanks for the review!**

**-_Fidjie_: Thanks so much. I have more characters to introduce, which is hard to juggle, but I'm hoping to keep the story going strong. And don't worry, 'cause I'll tell you guys when I'll be posting the first story, just need a bit more time to get it all set up with no missing chapters, since the computer they were in was glitchy. And OMG, you're gonna make me cry with your compliments, so thank you very much!**

**-_OnyxWrting_: Thanks! I hope you continue to enjoy. I will also keep trying to do my best.**

**-_Love . Fiction . 2020_: Awesome!**

**-_aish_: Yeah, don't worry, I will be posting it again after I take care of some changes I wanted to implement, so stay alert.**

**-_Malou23_: Thanks for the review! And yes, I will post it as soon as possible, so stay tuned.**

**-_ArtemisLuna85_: I am so glad you're loving it and will continue to do so. I appreciate the love and support, so thank you!**

**Disclaimer: ****I own nothing belonging to the Vampire Diaries and claim no ownership over anything pertaining to it. I only own my characters and whatever else that is not from the show.**

* * *

_the remnant_

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Stefan hissed as his shirt rubbed against the tender skin of his chest that had yet to heal. While he was better and only felt a bit sore, there was still some vervain on his chest that rubbed against the fabric of his shirt, which made his movements a bit painful as he worked on unfolding the sheet that he would use to wrap Gloria's corpse in. He was a bit annoyed that Katherine had been of little to no help, which left him to take care of Gloria as she cleaned up the area, including the items and herbs the witch had been using. Since they planned to make it look like Gloria left town, the two vampires were covering up everything, which would throw Klaus off. Still, Stefan knew he was testing his luck.

Katherine stretched her arms upward before rolling her shoulders. "I've been thinking about your diabolical plan," she said as she stared down at Stefan with her hands on her jutted hips, watching him place the sheet over Gloria's body.

"Oh," Stefan said with a mocking tone as he looked up at her. "Do tell."

"Well, you must know that Klaus is too paranoid to ever fully trust you," Katherine began, explaining her guess as to what she thought Stefan's plan was. "But the sister, she loves you like it was yesterday." She smirked with pearly white teeth showing, realizing she was on the right track by a look that passed in his eyes. "She's the easier mark, but you can't just pretend to care," she continued. "Klaus will know better, so you do the opposite. You bond with him and make her feel left out." She nodded, impressed if that was his plan. "That will only make her want you more."

Stefan nodded as he stopped wrapping Gloria's corpse in the sheet. "You mean to say that I'm taking a page out of the Katherine Pierce playbook." He sighed heavily. "It sounds like a good plan, but I've barely been able to spend much time with Klaus recently, so you're not exactly accurate."

"The only question is why, Stefan?" she asked him, frowning because she was still unable to figure out the answer to that question. She failed to see why Stefan was trying so hard to try to fool both Originals. "I mean, I get it. You want to keep Klaus away from Mystic Falls, but what else do you expect to get from it?"

Stefan chuckled as he stood up to stand in front of her after finishing up with his task. "You know what's funny?" He smirked at the older vampire. "You keep talking to me like I actually trust you enough to tell you anything about my diabolical plan."

Katherine rolled her eyes at him. "Oh, come on, Stefan, we're beyond that." She gestured to the witch's dead body with a wave of her hand. "I saved you from Hilda, the high voodoo priestess."

"Okay." Stefan nodded, deciding to at least tell her something for having helped him. "I knew them, back in the twenties," he explained, referring to Klaus and Rebekah. "They were running from someone." He could now clearly remember the look of fear on Klaus' and Rebekah's faces when he last saw them in Chicago. "Someone who scared them." He could practically see the gears turning in Katherine's head.

Katherine took a moment as she recalled whispers of the one Stefan was talking about. "The Hunter," she said with narrowed eyes as Stefan nodded with a hum. "I heard stories about him centuries ago."

"Don't you want to know why an Original vampire who can't be killed is afraid of a vampire hunter?" Stefan asked her rhetorically.

Now this piqued Katherine's interest. "If you're planning on making a move against Klaus, I want in."

"That's good." Stefan placed his hand on her arm with raised eyebrows, giving her a comforting squeeze, but his tone of voice told her he was speaking with sarcasm. "It's good to want things, Katherine."

"Stefan," she tried to argue with him, desperate to find a way to get rid of Klaus and be freed of always living in fear for her life, even if it had a small chance of success.

"Katherine." Stefan grunted as he picked up Gloria's body, throwing it over his shoulder with effortless strength. "I'm in this alone." He stared at her. "If you're looking for a diabolical partner in crime, I suggest you look elsewhere."

"You can't just leave me without giving me something else, Stefan," Katherine grumbled, her eyes following him as he began to make his way out of the bar. "That can't be all you found out about him after all that time you spent with him," she scoffed. She was becoming annoyed with Stefan for failing to get more information out of the hybrid.

Stefan stopped but didn't turn around to face her, debating on what else he should tell her. The only reason he decided to tell Katherine anything was to ensure that somebody else knew what he learned about Klaus so far, so he should also tell her everything else…just in case. "There is something else that could be odd. It's certainly strange for Klaus." He turned around to face Katherine, adjusting Gloria's body to be in a better position. "Have you ever heard of faeries?"

"Of course. They are mythical creatures craved by all," Katherine huffed with a shrug of her shoulders. "I know witch covens are obsessed with them, mostly old ones. It's because of them and vampires that they're all gone." She sighed with a slight roll of her eyes. "I wish I could have gotten a taste of one. I heard that their blood is like a drop of heaven."

"Klaus has one," Stefan told her, causing her eyes to widen in shock. He tapped the body on his shoulder. "Gloria told me a bit about her."

"But they're extinct. Many people have tried to find any stragglers without any success," she argued, frowning.

"It seems like this one is what's left of the faeries," he explained. "She's half-human, half-faerie."

"How the hell did he get his hands on one?" she asked in complete disbelief. "It's been decades since I've heard of one still alive."

"I tried asking him, but he was obviously vague about it. Whatever their story is, he's certainly secretive about it," Stefan answered, recalling how protective Klaus appeared to be when he was introduced to Gwen. "I couldn't learn much about their relationship, but I think he cares about her to some extent."

Katherine gave him an incredulous look before a throaty laugh left her mouth before she calmed down. "You have got to be joking," she huffed, her eyes showing nothing but disbelief. "Klaus doesn't care about anyone but himself; he's probably forgotten how. He carries his family around in coffins because he can't kill them, so storing them up is the next best thing."

"Everyone in the coffins are his family?" he asked her, having not known that. During all the time he spent with Klaus, he never really bothered to ask what was inside the coffins, not that Klaus was sharing more than what he wanted to share.

Katherine was tempted to roll her eyes due to Stefan's lack of investigative skills, but she managed to steel herself. "Who else?" she said with a shrug of her shoulders. "Did you actually spend a whole summer with him?"

Stefan shook his head and told her, "Take my word for it, Katherine. He cares about that girl in some way."

The older vampire shrugged. "Doesn't really matter. It just means that she's someone no one should be stupid enough to mess with, but that is _if_ he does give a damn about her. I really can't stress that 'if' enough." She gathered her things and approached him. "Klaus isn't someone who can afford to have weaknesses, which would be what she is. I really think you're just seeing things, Stefan." She shrugged her shoulders. "She's probably one of his plans to outmaneuver an enemy or something."

"I'm telling you, Katherine," Stefan insisted. "He _does_ care about her."

"That's information that I cannot use," she told him with a shrug of her shoulders. "It's pointless." She walked past him to leave the bar, leaving him to finish cleaning up.

Stefan should have expected that from her, given that Katherine wasn't one to risk herself on a mere hunch about some girl she knows nothing about. "So, what are you going to do now?" he asked her, not really expecting an answer from the other vampire. "Are you gonna stick around?"

Katherine stopped at the front door and looked over her shoulder to tell him, "I'm just gonna go and find myself a diabolical partner in crime elsewhere." She glanced around the bar one last time. "I recommend you start making tracks now that Gloria's dead. Klaus isn't someone you can outsmart, Stefan." She then disappeared into the night without a trace.

.

"Klaus, wait!" Juniper called as she tried to keep up with the hybrid's long strides with Gwen beside her. The three of them were headed to Gloria's bar after a fuming Klaus stormed out of Juniper's store, ignoring them as he focused on what he'd do to the witch and vampire who betrayed him.

"What is it?" Klaus asked as he stopped to turn around and face them, standing in the middle of the sidewalk and ignoring the people around them. "Can't you see me filled with murderous intent?" He looked between both girls. "I have a mess that needs cleaning up, people who need to be murdered and problems that are still not fixed."

Juniper sighed as she rolled her eyes. "Look, do you actually have a plan?"

"I do," he answered, noticing the uncertainty in the eyes of both the frowning witch and young hybrid. "I know I can seem like a temperamental lunatic, but I do have a plan."

"Then what is it?" asked Gwen, giving him an inquiring look.

"It's quite simple, really," he began to explain, motioning for the girls to follow him to stand in the mouth of a nearby alleyway, away from prying eyes and ears. "Gloria is no longer of any use to me, so it's best I end her unnecessary existence before she becomes a nuisance in the future."

Gwen reminded him, "But you said that you needed a witch, and you have said that there aren't many witches who are fond of you."

Juniper raised an eyebrow at Klaus in question when she saw him give her a look. She knew what he wanted to ask her, but he turned his gaze away from her without uttering a sound. "Oh, for the love of," Juniper groaned in irritation, giving Klaus a look filled with annoyance. "I know you're an immortal hybrid, but you can ask me to do you a solid like a normal human being."

"I need the services of a witch," he told her, still refusing to meet Juniper's eyes, since he knew that she wore a smug grin on her lips.

Juniper hummed with an eyebrow raised inquiringly. "Are you asking me something?"

"I may require your help," he told her, forcing himself to lock eyes with her. "If you are willing."

"See?" She chuckled. "Why is it so impossible for you to ask for my help?"

"It's like making a deal with the devil himself," he scoffed, hoping he didn't just make a mistake.

The witch grinned. "It's more like a deal between two devils."

"What about Stefan?" asked Gwen. "You can't kill him. He should know where the necklace you're looking for is and who might have it."

"You're right, but I might already have an idea about that," Klaus said with a sigh. "As much as I would like to separate his head from his shoulders, I can't kill him yet, not until I'm sure." He fished his phone out of his pocket, his mind already working out a plan. He looked up his sister's contact and sent her a text, warning her to stay put in the warehouse where the coffins were and to watch out for Stefan.

"Do you have an evil scheme for everything?" Juniper asked him.

"Almost everything," said Klaus, stepping out of the alley with both girls following behind him. "You're still alive, so a few of them clearly failed."

Gwen rolled her eyes. "You really shouldn't be insulting the person who's giving you a hand."

"I never asked for it," Klaus countered.

"She's still helping you," argued Gwen.

"I am not repeating myself," said Klaus.

"You're unbelievable," Juniper remarked.

Klaus smirked at the witch over his shoulder. "I know."

Juniper gave the back of his head a halfhearted glare. "That was _not_ a compliment."

The group of three arrived at Gloria's bar just after sundown, but they were confused when they found that the place was closed with every window closed. By that time, the bar was booming with music and people having a good time, but the place appeared to be deserted, which did nothing but worsen Klaus' mood. Nothing had been going his way, not since he broke his curse.

Klaus turned to Gwen, placing a hand on her shoulder. "I think it's best that you went home."

Gwen scowled, appearing like he just slapped her across the face. "Are you serious?"

"Look, I never intended to involve you this much into my problems," Klaus began to explain, glancing at Juniper behind Gwen. He saw the witch lift a hand up with a scoff before it fell back to her side. "I just don't want…" he paused, unable to come up with a convincing argument to turn her away. And he was also thinking that he couldn't really leave her on her own after others found out about her existance, so his options were limited.

"Don't want what?" Gwen asked him, eyebrows furrowed.

Klaus groaned, believing that he was going to regret what he was about to tell her. "Fine, fine," he heaved, knowing that he might regret his decision.

Gwen frowned, needing more confirmation. "Fine what?"

"You can come along," he told her, but then raised a finger to stop her from speaking as a smile appeared on her lips. "But you will do everything I say without a whisper of an argument. You have yet to actually experience the dangers outside of home, so I need you to listen to whatever I say to the letter." His eyes were steely as they stared into Gwen's hazel ones. "Have I made myself clear?"

"Crystal," Gwen said as she nodded with an unwavering gaze.

"What about you?" Juniper asked Klaus.

"What about _me_?" Klaus asked, frowning.

Juniper chuckled. "You're quite the danger yourself, so I think she has a good idea of what danger looks like."

Gwen smiled at that. "I think she's right."

The hybrid couldn't help but roll his eyes at both grinning girls before standing in front of the bar's entrance. He grabbed the door handle and broke it, allowing him to shove the door wide open with ease. Nothing but silence and emptiness was found, and this unnerved Gwen as an unpleasant chill went down her spine. She grimaced when the whispers began once more, but she recognized that the voices were coming from one person, which meant that death was present in this place. It sometimes bothered her that she had no control over this.

"Something bad happened here," Gwen whispered, but she was still heard.

"Bad for who?" asked Juniper.

Klaus focused on his senses, trying to see if there was any sign of life, only to come up with nothing. "Gloria's not here," he said as he stepped inside first.

"Do you think she might be at home?" Gwen asked as she looked around, but there was nothing she could find out of place.

Juniper closed the door behind her after they all entered the bar, her eyes scanning the area. "This place is practically her home." She checked the time on her watch that was around her right wrist. "She wouldn't be anywhere else at this hour."

Gwen stepped further into the bar, looking for something, but she didn't know what it was that she was looking for, since it was more of an inkling that was driving her. While Klaus went for the bar and Juniper went to the back, she opted to stay on the floor where the whispering was strongest, until she noticed something odd. There was one table that appeared to have been used with the chairs pulled back instead of being placed on top of the table. She put down her taupe purse on a table when she saw something on the floor that caught her attention with the whispering intensifying. She crouched as her eyes narrowed on a dark stain on the floor. "I think I found something," she called over her shoulder, glad that she no longer heard any voices ringing in her ears.

"What is it?" Klaus asked, walking over to Gwen before his eyes fell on what she was looking at, which had him frowning. He immediately recognized the substance that was on the floor. "That's blood." He took a moment to take a deep breath, his lycanthrope sense of smell being a better skill, which now helped him get through the scent of bleach that clouded the place. "This place reeks of it."

"Not just that. Someone was having fun with an old type of spell," Juniper said as she came back to the front, gaining her companions' attention. "Someone was cooking up a spell with vervain." She lifted her hand that held the plant that was toxic to vampires. "Gloria was probably torturing a vampire that could have had a beef with her."

"Can you tell what the spell was for?" Klaus asked her as he approached her with Gwen by his side.

Juniper was doubtful and it showed on her face. "It'll probably take a lot of time, since I don't know what other ingredients were used. You'd probably get faster answers from the vampire that was here."

Gwen frowned. "There was a vampire here?"

"His essence is all over this place," Juniper explained as her eyes looked around the establishment. "I can tell that the spell she used was an intrusive one on the vampire's side, and he's not dead."

"How do you know that?" Gwen asked.

Juniper placed the vervain on the bar's counter before taking a seat on a stool. "Well, the essence is faint," she explained as she waved her hand in the air. "If the vampire died here, it would have had a stronger presence. All deaths leave some type of mark, which is why I am picking up a lot of Gloria's essence. And this place looks like someone just tried to cover up a murder scene."

"So, Gloria's dead?" asked Gwen.

"Yes, but her body is nowhere near here," said Juniper.

"Can you tell me the name of the vampire?" Klaus asked Juniper, but he already felt like he knew the answer. While there are a lot of vampires in the city, not many hung around when they caught wind of him. Besides, he already had some suspicions about Stefan before, but they started to take root when the necklace was mentioned and there was a shift in the younger vampire's demeanor.

"I can't get a name," said Juniper, but she lifted a hand to silence Klaus when he opened his mouth. She closed her eyes, focusing on gathering some of the essence the vampire left behind to get an image or a clue. "But he has dark blonde hair and dreamy, green eyes." She opened her eyes. "Know anyone like that?" She couldn't get a name, but she was able to manipulate the vampire's essence to create an image of his appearance in her mind's eye.

Klaus' face darkened, since he could only think of one person. "Oh, I certainly do."

.

Stefan stepped inside the warehouse where he and Klaus stopped by when they first arrived in Chicago to drop off his coffins, and it was also the place where he reunited with Rebekah. He knew that he could be on borrowed time, knowing that he couldn't keep fooling Klaus forever. He needed to find out who Klaus was running from back in the twenties, especially if there was a weapon involved that could kill the hybrid. And this led him to stand in front of one of the many coffins, debating between manipulating the information out of Rebekah or taking his chances waking another member of Klaus' family to get the information he needed, since he figured they wouldn't all be as forgiving as Rebekah for being daggered, not even Elijah. Just as he reached out his hand toward one of the coffins, he retracted it when a voice reached his ears from behind.

"You're back," Rebekah greeted as she leaned against the metal of a pallet rack, smiling at Stefan as he turned to face her. "Finally." She lifted her hand, showing her phone. "Nik went to check on the witch." She kept her face schooled as she approached Stefan, noticing how tense he was when he crossed his arms over his chest at having been caught snooping around the caskets. "Dreary, isn't it?" Her eyes went to the coffin that Stefan had reached for. "The family cargo."

Stefan hummed while nodding before looking back at her. "Why don't you un-dagger them?"

"Because..." Rebekah began with a deep exhale, "he would hunt me down and kill me." She paused and tilted her head with pursed lips. "Not _really_ kill me, but he has his way of making you want to be. He's a vindictive little bastard, my brother." She felt an unpleasant shiver go down her spine at the very thought of the dagger's cool steel being stabbed into her heart.

"But you still care about him." Stefan frowned at her, prodding her for more information. "Why?"

"Well, I hated him for a long time," she mumbled, recalling the many times Klaus had wounded her heart over the years to the point of being beyond repair on more than one occasion. Still, he was her family. She went and sat on top of the coffin Stefan was standing next to. "It was exhausting."

Stefan sat down next to her. "You know, when I met you two, you were both on the run."

Rebekah smiled at Stefan, keeping her brows from furrowing. "That's also exhausting," she told him with a steady voice.

"Who were you running from?" he asked.

"What do you mean?" she asked, alarms going off in her head. It felt like her undead heart almost froze over once more.

"The last night I saw you, there was a man looking for you," he elaborated, seeking to have her open up to him. "You both seemed afraid." He shrugged his shoulders to appear nonchalant. "I just wouldn't think Klaus would be afraid of anybody."

"No one in this world is truly fearless, Stefan," she told him, raising her eyebrows. "Not even Niklaus."

"Who was that man?" asked Stefan, eager to get an answer.

"I can't." Rebekah shook her head as she stood up, unable to even think about doing something that would invoke her brother's wrath, let alone put their lives in danger. That was something she would not risk doing ever again. "If Nik knew we were talking about this, he would–"

"No, no, no," Stefan cut her off, standing up to face her. "I'm sorry." He placed a hand on her arm, smiling down at her. "Just forget I asked. Okay?" He recognized that pushing her any further would do him no good. "But I am a bit curious about his…'friend'." He opted to go another route to get off topic. "I never knew him to be the type to have any."

"You mean Gwen," Rebekah clarified, receiving a nod in response. "Yes, my brother likes to collect his fair share of rarities."

Stefan nodded, playing dumb. "I caught a bit of her scent. It's like nothing I've ever encountered before."

"I have," she told him, explaining further when he raised an eyebrow at her. "Before the New World was discovered, her species was what made the land truly flourish with magic and miracles. They were our neighbors and doctors and teachers."

"What would Klaus want with one now?" asked Stefan.

Rebekah shrugged her shoulders, now looking at her nails. "Not sure, but I wouldn't worry too much about that."

"Is she like his girlfriend or something?" Stefan pushed further, wanting _useful_ information. He was starting to lose his patience with the older vampire, and he prided himself in his tolerance, having thought he had enough practice with Damon for a brother.

"Goodness, no." Rebekah's eyes scrutinized his face, feeling once more that he was not the same man she knew back then when everything was right between them. It was upsetting for her, since she tried and failed to find the Stefan she had come to love, only to be met with a man with the same face but different eyes. "Speaking of, Nik told me about the girl you loved. The one that died."

"The one he killed," he corrected, releasing a heavy sigh.

"Yes, that one." Rebekah noticed something fleeting flash in his eyes. "He also told me that you're only with him because he saved your brother."

Stefan cleared his throat while glancing away from her for a moment before meeting her eyes once more. "It's true."

"I think he secretly admires that about you, how you'd sacrifice anything for family," she told him, and it was no lie. Even though Klaus dragged her and the rest of her family around in boxes, she knew her brother's greatest weakness was his love for his family. "Don't tell him I told you that." She whispered that last part, smirking.

Stefan chuckled with closed lips. "Your secret is safe with me." He began to turn around and leave, but he was pulled back before lips met his with passion he tried to return. He cupped Rebekah's face with delicate hands before pulling away from her, since he could only picture a brunette's face.

"Do you think you'll love anyone like you loved that girl?" she asked him, their breaths mingling with how close they were to one another.

"One day, maybe," he told her with a small nod.

Rebekah smiled at him, but she was filled with nothing but disappointment at having been proven wrong. While she had craved nothing more than to be in Stefan's warm arms, she only felt cold in his embrace. "I can always tell when you're lying, Stefan."

"What?" Stefan frowned at this, his body becoming tense. "I'm not–"

Rebekah slapped away his hands when he tried to reach for her. "Don't bother, your kiss already gave you away." She scoffed while rolling her eyes. "I can't believe he was right about you, but here we are. I'm never going to hear the end of this."

Just then, the door to the warehouse was slammed open, the sound echoing throughout the near-empty space. "Gloria's gone," Klaus bellowed as he made his appearance with Gwen and Juniper behind him. "It appears like she cleared out."

"She's gone?" asked Rebekah.

"Yes, but it looked like someone was trying to cover up the fact that she's dead," said Klaus, glancing at Stefan. "I do wonder what could have happened."

"Do you need another witch?" asked Rebekah, keeping her eyes on Stefan.

"Already got one," Klaus said as he pointed at Juniper, the latter waving a hand in greeting.

Rebekah smiled at the girl, remembering her from when she had awakened. "I remember you."

Juniper nodded. "Yeah, I'm the one you almost made a snack of."

"I do apologize for that, but I think we can blame Nik," Rebekah told her.

"That's fine by me," said Juniper.

Rebekah's eyes landed on Gwen. "Hello, pet."

"Hey, Rebekah," Gwen greeted.

Stefan cleared his throat as he looked at Klaus, keeping calm. "What happened to Gloria?"

Klaus smirked, but the air around him was enough to tell the vampire that the hybrid was in a terrible mood. "Like you wouldn't know."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Stefan said, feigning a frown.

The hybrid was itching to shove his hand into Stefan's chest. Klaus was very much surprised that he managed to hold himself back from putting his hands on the young vampire, but he still needed his former friend. "Rebekah, dear," he turned to his sister. "Is it required of me to tell you that I was–"

"You were right, Nik. There _is_ something wrong," Rebekah interrupted him, annoyed with the smug look he was giving her. "He was asking about Mikael."

Klaus' grin disappeared as his face darkened. "What?"

"'Mikael'?" Juniper looked at Gwen for answers. "Who's Mikael?"

Gwen's eyes had widened a bit, remembering the name due to Klaus having spoken about him before. "You mean the vampire hunter."

Juniper's own eyes widened. "You mean _the_ freaking vampire hunter?" She released a weary sigh. "This day just keeps getting better and better."

"He's not with us, Nik," Rebekah told Klaus. "I can sense it."

"She's wrong," Stefan said as he approached Klaus.

"If she's not," Juniper spoke up, drawing Stefan's attention to her, "you wouldn't mind telling us what happened to Gloria."

All eyes fell on Stefan as he began to fidget, unable to come up with anything when his mind became blank. He turned to Klaus, pleadingly saying, "Klaus–"

In a mere blink of an eye, Stefan was on the floor with a broken neck and a seething Klaus standing over him, having caused Gwen and Juniper to gasp in surprise. "That actually made me feel a little better," he sighed.

"What do we do now?" asked Rebekah, completely unfazed by what just happened and looking more bored than anything else.

Klaus glanced at Stefan's prone form. "What did you pick up from him?"

"Something in him shifted when I mentioned that girl you killed," Rebekah answered, her eyes looking at her former lover. "It's like something from that town you told me about is still keeping him there, and it's not his brother. His behavior is too odd for someone who lost his lover and saved his brother."

"Wait, wait, wait," Juniper piped up as she approached both vampires. "Who did you kill?"

"His girlfriend," Klaus replied.

"Really, Nik?" Gwen asked, unsurprised and unimpressed. "And you thought it was a good idea to bring him along with you?"

"I thought he wouldn't be so hung up on one human girl," Klaus argued.

Juniper rolled her eyes. "You know that's not how it works. Vampires are not impervious to falling in love, so it's no surprise that he'd be plotting to kill you." She shook her head. "I mean, you killed your supposed friend's girlfriend. You went far beyond of betraying the bro code."

"Is it so surprising?" asked Klaus, looking at the women around him.

"No," Rebekah said while shaking her head.

"Not really," said Gwen.

"Very normal of you, actually," said Juniper.

"What now?" Rebekah asked Klaus.

"Start packing," Klaus said as he reached down to grab Stefan's arm, dragging him away.

Gwen tilted her head, curious. "Where are we going?"

Klaus grinned as he glanced at the women over his shoulder. "To a little town called Mystic Falls."

.

Things were moving fast for Gwen. It was only a few days ago since Klaus arrived in Chicago, and now she was packing all her belongings to move once more after she left the warehouse with Rebekah and Juniper. It wasn't anything she wasn't used to, since living with Klaus required to be prepared to be on the road. This meant that she couldn't really settle down anywhere, given that they never stayed for more than a year or so in one place. And that was why she found it easy to pack her things, which mostly consisted of clothes, shoes, accessories and some art supplies. Every other comfort in her apartment had been supplied by Klaus, so there wasn't much else that she needed to take with her.

Gwen looked around her room, making sure that she didn't forget anything. Once she was sure that everything was packed, she closed her suitcases that were on her bed before placing them on the floor and pushing them out into her living room where Rebekah was sitting on the couch watching television.

Rebekah looked away from the TV and glanced at the suitcases Gwen was wheeling out of her bedroom. "Are you nearly done, pet?" she asked, turning off the TV. "I imagine Nik's desperate to get going."

"Yeah, I think I'm almost done," Gwen answered as she looked around the room. She looked at the canvases she had painted and decided that it was best to leave them behind, since she could have Klaus deliver them to wherever they were going to settle down next. "I seem to have everything on me." She picked up her purse from her dining table to make sure her things were there.

"What about the witch?" asked Rebekah.

"Um," Gwen hummed as she inspected the contents of her purse before she checked her phone to see if Juniper had tried contacting her. "She had to go back to close her store and leave things taken care of." She found a text from the witch asking where they were going to meet up. "All we have to do is wait for Nik to call."

"Is she someone we can trust?" Rebekah asked as she stood up from the couch, walking over to the young girl.

Gwen looked up at Rebekah after replying to Juniper, finding the vampire looking at her with narrowed eyes. "Um, yeah, of course." She was a bit uncomfortable with the blonde's intimidating demeanor. "I mean, she figured out that Gloria lied about the necklace and that Stefan knew more than what he was saying."

Rebekah perked up at this, her eyes widening. "Wait, she found out where my necklace is."

Gwen nodded. "June said that it's in this town we're going to."

"That's good. I'll get my necklace back and wring the neck of whoever has it," said Rebekah, now eager to get going to get her necklace back. Ever since the dagger was pulled out of her chest, her hands always twitched whenever they tried to seek out the piece of jewelry that she always wore but was no longer there. "I just can't wait to get it back."

"Why does that necklace mean so much to you?" Gwen couldn't help but ask, since Klaus only wanted the item to get his answers concerning the creation of his hybrids, but Rebekah appeared to be attached to it.

The blonde vampire took a deep breath as she walked over to the dining room's table, sitting down on a chair. "It used to belong to my mother," she said, her eyes falling on her hand that was lying on the edge of the table. "It's the last thing I have of her. I've never parted with it, so I feel like something's missing."

"We'll find it," Gwen told her as she also sat down on the chair next to Rebekah's, playing with her own necklace. "I can understand why you want it returned to you." She looked down at the pearl that hung from the thin chain around her neck. "I don't know what I'd do if I lost mine."

"Who gave it to you?" Rebekah asked, truly curious.

Shaking her head with a small smile, Gwen said, "It was with me when Nik found me. He said that it belonged to my mother, so I always keep it on me. I feel like I have her with me if I do, even though I never knew her or have any memories of her." She smiled at her necklace. "She must've felt something for me if she was capable of going through a storm for me."

"I don't think that matters," said Rebekah, gaining Gwen's attention. "Even if you never knew her, you still feel like you love her. It's an unexplainable bond that is there ever since a mother finds out that she's with child and vice versa, or that's what I like to think."

"I think it's nice," Gwen agreed. Although she lost her mother before she could have any real memories of her, she still felt like she was connected to her. Just as Rebekah said, Gwen liked to believe her mother had to love her in some way, even if there was a possibility that it was only wishful thinking. "I only wish I had a memory of her."

Rebekah couldn't help but smile. "Here we both are, two orphaned girls missing our mothers."

"What happened to your mom?" Gwen asked, since Klaus never really liked to talk about his mother.

"Nik never told you?" Rebekah countered with her own question, raising an eyebrow.

Gwen shook her head with pursed lips. "He doesn't really like to talk about it, so I steer clear from that subject. I know she died sometime after your family was turned into vampires, but that's as much as he was willing to share." Her eyes became downcast when she remembered how he sometimes snapped at her, since his mother was a sensitive subject for Klaus, and she always felt such intense grief and guilt from him whenever the topic was mentioned. "It's something we put in the 'do-not-discuss' pile."

"Well," Rebekah began as she released a deep breath, "she was killed by our father." Gwen's eyes widened at this revelation. "He tore her heart from her chest as Nik watched. We fled our home not long after our father went on a rampage, destroying everything in his path."

"And he's been hunting you and your family ever since," Gwen stated, recalling how Klaus always became tense and alert whenever his father was mentioned.

Rebekah nodded. "For almost a thousand years."

Gwen found it hard to believe that a father would go as far as to hunt down his own children throughout centuries, regardless of the reason. "It's kind of hard to believe."

"Well, not so much," said Rebekah. "Even before we were turned into vampires, our father was…quite a terrible man. And after becoming a vampire, everything that made him terrible was heightened." She gave Gwen an empty smile. "He truly is a monster."

"It's a good thing that there hasn't been any word of Mikael," Gwen told the blonde.

Rebekah frowned at this. "None?"

Shaking her head, Gwen said, "None whatsoever. Nik said that it's been quiet for some time."

"Good riddance," hummed Rebekah, not at all interested to know where her father was or what he was up to. She actually hoped he never entered their lives again.

Gwen's phone began to ring, drawing the attention of both girls to it. The young halfling reached into her purse and pulled out her phone to find that it was Klaus. She answered the call and placed the phone to her ear, greeting him with a, "Hello, Nik."

"_I have everything ready_," Klaus responded. "_I'll send for you and Rebekah_."

"What about June?" asked Gwen.

"_I already took care of that_," Klaus answered.

"Okay. We'll see you in a bit," Gwen said before hanging up and standing from the chair. "It's time to go."

Rebekah jumped on her feet, stretching her arms upward with a deep exhale. "Oh, good. Getting out of this city will do us some good."

The Original vampire helped Gwen by taking one of the suitcases and leaving the apartment, which left Gwen to look around her temporary home one last time. She didn't feel too attached to the place, since she lived there for only a year. It was like any other home Klaus moved them to, and where they were going to now would be no different. Except that unlike every other time she had to bid farewell to a place, she felt uncertain when reaching for her apartment's front door to close it behind her, feeling like things would be different this time around.

* * *

**End of chapter!**

**I hope you guys enjoyed this kind of filler chapter. It was a bit hard to write and I just kept making changes until I was satisfied enough to post it, but I hope it was decent.**

**Remember to share you love, hate, critics, thoughts, etc. in the reviews. Also Fave and Follow if you like/love this story.**

**See you all in the next chapter!**


	6. new in town

**Hello, readers! I hope you are all staying safe during this pandemic and that your families are also safe, so be careful. I am also glad that many are enjoying this story, so I just want to say thank you all very much for the support.**

**ALSO, I am thinking that this story might change to M, but I am not so sure. I will see how the writing goes, but I will let you all know and put it up to a vote. This is just a warning, not set in stone and I will tell you all the reasons for the change of rating.**

**Now, to answer to the reviews:**

**-_ArtemisLuna85_: Thanks for the support! And yes, I am happy to say that we've gotten to Mystic Falls and dive into the whole drama, which will include a lot more interactions and such. I am also nervous about writing the other characters and do them justice, so I hope you'll enjoy!**

**-_xenocanaan_: While I will still follow the series' plot, I will have Gwen change certain things as time passes, since her status as a faerie will have something to do with that. My intention of adding June to my story is to also change things up a bit. Wish I could share more, but I am not going to spoil!**

**-_GhostGypsy_: Happy to announce that Gwen and Rebekah will do a lot more bonding; I love writing those two together! I am also happy to know that you're loving the story.**

**-_OnyxWriting_: Glad that you enjoyed! And you don't have to wait for long.**

**-_Sting3_: Welcome to the story! I am so glad you're liking it so far!**

**-_Love . Fiction . 2020_: I'm glad you're liking it and hope you'll continue to do so!**

**-_PrincessMagic_: I welcome you to the story! I am glad that you're loving the story so far! I am also happy that you like the little group I created.**

**-_Leila Davis_: I am so happy to know that you love Gwen, since I am enjoying writing her and trying to make her flow naturally into the plot. The faeries in my story are a bit hard to explain and write about, but I hope I don't disappoint. And I am so desperate and nervous to get to the meeting with Kol, 'cause I strive for them to be a cute couple, too!**

**Disclaimer: ****I own nothing belonging to the Vampire Diaries and claim no ownership over anything pertaining to it. I only own my characters and whatever else that is not from the show.**

* * *

_new in town_

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.

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Mystic Falls, Virginia

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Taking her eyes away from looking around the _Mystic Grill_, Gwen turned her attention to the waitress with a soft smile when two plates with the same order were placed on the table she and Juniper were occupying. The girls thanked the waitress before digging into their burgers, moans of pleasure leaving their closed mouths when the flavors of meat, buns, bacon, cheddar, and caramelized onions met their taste buds after having gone almost half the day without eating anything. After taking a few more bites and their hunger being partially sated, they paused to look around the bar from the corner booth they had picked out to survey the place.

"This is a nice place," Juniper hummed as she reached into her bag, searching for a certain herb she thought would come in handy, since she had opted to leave behind her grimoire and only bring her emergency kit. She found no logic in bringing her grimoire when it had nothing about hybrids. "I can imagine it can be a bit suffocating, though. Small towns like this one?" She glanced up at Gwen. "Everyone knows everybody, so nothing is a secret for long."

"I think it's nice, but that's probably my hunger talking," Gwen said as she took another bite of her burger, watching Juniper pick out an herb from her bag.

Juniper brought the sage that she had rolled into a small ball close to her face and blew air into it, waiting for a bit of smoke to come out of the herb before placing it in the middle of the table to act as some type of incense. "Okay, now we can speak freely without any nosy vampires listening in."

Gwen hummed as she stared at the smoking plant. "Does it really work?"

"Trust me, I know my herbs and spells. It also only works for the area of our table," Juniper explained, taking a sip of her soda. "If anyone comes and sits with us, they'll hear us just fine, but they won't hear anything outside of the area of our booth."

"So, people walking by or sitting nearby won't hear us?" Gwen asked to clarify.

"Nope," answered Juniper, grabbing her burger to continue eating. "So, what did Klaus want us to do that he can't do himself?" She was too hungry to do anything else but sit and enjoy her food after the long trip from Chicago to Virginia.

"The people he got into a scuffle with know who he is, so it makes sense that we scope out the town, but I don't really know what we can do," Gwen answered, taking a sip of her Smirnoff to satiate her dry mouth, and she found herself liking the flavor. "I don't even know what he wants us to look for."

Juniper stared at the bottle of flavored vodka Gwen asked her to order for her. "Not that I have a problem with it, but since when do you drink that?"

Gwen glanced at Juniper's inquiring eyes. "I thought I could try it. I already tried some champagne when I went shopping with Rebekah, so I just thought I'd give this a shot."

"What?" Juniper feigned a shocked gasp with a hand placed over her chest, her eyes widening comically. "Are you replacing me as your best friend? What, trying to get her to like you by drinking while underage?"

"Stop it." Gwen rolled her eyes at her with a lopsided smile. "You're more of a sister than a friend." She looked at her drink. "I still prefer my teas."

"Well, I recommend you try wine. It's better than beer if I do say so myself," she told the half-faerie. She cleared her throat and focused on their task. "So, for now, we keep our eyes and ears open for the one thing towns are always known for," Juniper said after finishing her food, sighing heavily as she was overcome with bliss. She smiled as she leaned back against the booth while rubbing her full belly.

"What's that?" Gwen asked, taking a bite of her own burger.

"Gossip," said Juniper, grinning. "Trust me, this place is the center of everyday gossip, which includes everything that everyone is up to. We'll pick up something eventually, just you wait." She scoffed. "Although, I highly doubt we'll be lucky."

Gwen hummed, taking her time to eat her burger while looking around the place. She watched people come and go, sitting at the bar or at a table, spending time as a group or taking some time for themselves. The place really had a cozy feel to it, which was something she could get used to. "Um," she hummed as she looked back at Juniper, "is it okay for you to come all the way here with us? I mean, what about the store?"

Juniper waved off Gwen's concern, her lips slightly pursed. "Nothing for you to worry about, doll. I have no problem in doing Klaus this solid." She grinned with raised eyebrows. "Especially when I already cashed in my favor by having him cover any debts that Missus Bixby owed." She chuckled at the younger girl's widened eyes and shocked smile. "Yes, she's gonna be a very happy lady in her retirement."

"Tell me about it," Gwen said with a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes as she slowly came to realize something she hadn't really thought about. "So, you're going back to Chicago after finding out what's wrong with Nik not being able to make more hybrids?"

Shrugging her shoulders, the witch took a sip of her drink. "I can't just leave the store closed forever."

"That's true," Gwen sighed as she placed what remained of her burger after losing her appetite at the thought of having no one else but Klaus and his overprotectiveness. "So, we'll be saying goodbye soon." It pained her having to say that out loud, having grown to care for Juniper, since she was the only friend she had. And even though they had known one another for only a year or so, she already considered the witch her family.

"What?" Juniper frowned at this, completely taken aback. "What do you mean?"

"Well, once Nik has his hybrids, he'll move us again," Gwen explained, already used to the nomadic lifestyle she had with Klaus. She also figured Rebekah would be joining them now that she was awake. "It's how it's always been."

"Don't be silly. It's not like we're not going to see each other anymore," Juniper said, folding her arms on the table while staring at a saddened Gwen. "Phones do exist, so we can always keep in touch, or whenever you feel like Klaus is being overbearing and you want to run away." This had Gwen chuckling. "I might also have to look for a new place after getting Missus Bixby settled."

Gwen perked up at this, raising an eyebrow at the smirking witch. "What?"

"The old lady's debts are gone, thanks to Klaus," Juniper explained. "I'll have to visit her to let her decide what she wants to do with the place, since she'll probably live out her remaining days in Florida, which will leave me free to do as I wish. I might even surprise Klaus by moving next door to wherever you guys end up, so you need to keep me updated."

The half-breed had to laugh at the image of Klaus' face if he heard Juniper. "That would be an amazing thing to witness."

"See?" Juniper shared a smile with Gwen as she scooted closer to the younger girl, placing an arm around the latter's shoulders. Their temples leaned against one another as they stared at the table, both still smiling. "You won't have to be alone again. Not you or me, got it?" Gwen's body became still, not having expected the witch to see through her, but she nodded against Juniper's temple. "We may not be related by blood, but when has that ever determined who family is?" the witch asked rhetorically.

"That's true," said Gwen. It wasn't that she could no longer live with Klaus or anything, but he was more of a father to her than anything else. "Thanks."

"For what?" asked Juniper.

"For being my friend," Gwen answered.

Juniper gave Gwen's arm a squeeze. "That is nothing you have to thank me for…but you can grovel a bit." This had them both laughing.

Both girls separated from one another and went back to their food and drink, making conversation about the town and where they could go to next to get more information to bring back to Klaus.

Not a few seconds later, two girls sat next to their booth, which Juniper took notice of, since it was the booth in her line of vision but behind Gwen. The witch's eyebrows furrowed when they landed on a brunette with straightened hair who was accompanying a blonde girl with wavy hair and blue-green eyes. The witch immediately recognized the brunette with almond-shaped, brown eyes as the one she saw in her visions when looking for the necklace. She also recalled the familiar chilling sense she got when seeing a vampire, which was what the blonde was.

"Here we go," Juniper mumbled, directing her attention back to her drink.

Gwen looked at her friend, giving her a questioning look. "What is it?"

"Don't look. I don't want you to move," Juniper told Gwen, locking eyes with the latter to keep her from looking away, since people had the tendency to do the opposite when given an order. "Don't look away from me when I tell you that the girl who I saw with Klaus' necklace is behind you, sitting in the booth next to us with a blonde chick who is clearly a vampire."

"Okay," Gwen said with uncertainty. She did not think they would encounter the person they were looking for in the first place they visited, which left her wondering what they should do next. "What do we do now?" she asked, getting nervous for some reason.

"I'm thinking," Juniper huffed, her mind coming up empty. "You're supposed to be good at this," she told Gwen. "What would Klaus do if he were in our shoes?"

"Oh, yeah, just give me a minute while I take out my journal with notes on how to massacre everyone in here in different, unique ways," Gwen deadpanned, her eyes narrowed when they settled on Juniper. "Why would you think I'd know what to do? Because Nik raised me?"

"Right," Juniper groaned. "I keep forgetting you're a sheltered girl."

Gwen frowned. "Hey!"

Juniper waved a hand at Gwen. "Please, you know it's true. You're a daddy's girl."

"Whatever," the young girl mumbled while leaning back on the booth with a pout.

Juniper exhaled loudly as she crossed her arms over her chest. "I'm no good with evil plans. Torturing and manipulating others aren't my forte. How does Klaus even do this?" She gave Gwen a playful glare. "Why didn't you pick up a few things from him over the years?"

"Excuse me for having a heart," Gwen countered, but she did question herself if she really had a heart after seeing Klaus commit many atrocities things over the years and never condemning him for it. She just couldn't.

"Damn," Juniper scoffed. "I was hoping for a bit of insight to the mind of an evil genius, but I guess having a conscious is good."

"Sorry to disappoint," Gwen told Juniper, sarcasm present in her voice. "I don't even know if I have a conscious. I mean, I've gotten over anyone who Klaus has ever killed. It doesn't really affect me." She sighed. "Am I a horrible person?" And it wasn't the first time she asked that question, but it was the first time she asked out loud and not to herself.

"Probably," Juniper said while shrugging her shoulders, causing Gwen to tilt her head. She placed a comforting hand on Gwen's. "It's not that you're a bad person, but many people see Klaus as the greatest evil that has walked on this earth, but you see something else." At Gwen's raised eyebrow, she continued. "You see the side of him that is still human…I think. I mean, the infamous Klaus took in a baby and raised her, and he did so without any intention of using you like others would have."

Gwen nodded, humming. "He's a good man."

"Exactly," said Juniper. "He may be your hero, but he's the villain to many others who will view you as a horrible person for siding with him."

"What about you?" Gwen asked the witch.

Juniper shrugged. "Everyone's crazy to me, but I love you best."

Gwen chuckled before taking a deep breath, giving the two girls behind her a discreet glance. "So, what do we do about them?"

"I don't know," said Juniper. "I mean, we have to do something other than sit here."

Gwen hushed Juniper as she tried to listen to the girls talking behind her, pushing her hair behind her ears to hear what the teenage girls were talking about without trouble, since their only option was to do as Juniper had previously suggested–keep eyes and ears open. The witch gave the girl a halfhearted glare for having been shushed before scooting closer to Gwen to also listen in on the conversation being had by the blonde and brunette.

"I don't know, Caroline," said the brunette with downcast eyes, placing her arms on the table. She thanked a waitress for the drinks she and the blonde had ordered when they sat down. "Do you really think it's a good idea?"

The blonde kept herself from rolling her eyes, huffing, "Come on, Elena. You've been brooding all summer." At Elena's pointed look, she further explained, "I know, I know." Her eyes softened as they met the brown ones of her friend. "I really do understand why, but we're gonna be seniors this year. And being seniors involves pranking our teachers to start our last year with a bang, it's an obligation."

"An obligation?" asked a smiling Elena.

Caroline nodded, giving Elena an incredulous look, as if the latter had lost her mind. "Yeah." She took a sip of her drink, finding that she would soon need another type of drink, preferably B+. "We've had a semi-crappy summer after a very crappy time." It had been quite difficult recently, what with Klaus killing Jenna and taking Stefan, not to mention everything else that preceded that. "We should be making memories, happy memories."

"Which brings us to Senior Prank Night," Elena stated, taking a sip of her coffee.

"Exactly. These are the memories that stay with us forever, and if we don't create these memories now, then what's the point of it all?" Caroline said, excitement dripping from her voice with her pearly whites showing. After everything they had gone through, she wanted to help everyone remember that they are still high school students, and they deserve to have some normality in their lives. "Prank Night will start us off. I already have Tyler, Bonnie and a few classmates on board, which leaves you and Matt."

Elena tapped her fingers on the table, looking down into her cup of coffee, thinking over what she should do. She had so much on her mind, what with her failed mission in Chicago and her argument with Damon, who had yet to respond to her calls or messages. Still, she felt like her head was going to explode if she continued to think about her problems, so setting up pranks could be a good way for her to take her mind off things and get back to living her life. "Okay." She nodded, causing Caroline's smile to widen. "Let's prank some teachers."

"Oh, I love you!" Caroline squealed, hugging her chuckling friend. "This is gonna be a fun night of many more that we'll never forget."

"Oh, fun," Juniper sighed, annoyed. "I so do not miss school, which is why I was more than happy to skip a few grades. It was all so filled with unnecessary drama." She grabbed her purse and slid out of the booth, causing Gwen to frown in question. "Let's go."

"Where?" asked Gwen, grabbing her purse to follow Juniper.

"I think we got exactly what we came for," Juniper simply said, calling over the waitress to pay for their food. She grabbed the sage and blew on it to stop it from smoking before wrapping it up in napkins and storing it back into her purse. "We should head back and report to _monsieur le capitaine_."

Gwen chuckled as she stood up. "I think we're going to make him very happy."

After the girls paid for their food, they passed by the table Elena and Caroline were sitting at and left the Mystic Grill. As they left, brown eyes followed them out of some type of curiosity she couldn't explain while ignoring the blonde girl beside her, having never seen the two brunettes in town before. After being called out for spacing out a few times, Elena returned her attention back to Caroline, forgetting the two strangers.

Leaving the bar behind, Gwen and Juniper walked through town and looked around as they headed to where they agreed to meet up with Klaus and Rebekah. They enjoyed the afternoon breeze as they talked about the town's history, including how the town operated. They found that it was quite staggering how potent the presence of supernatural creatures was in such a place that not many would look at twice in a map. After some time, the pair reached their destination.

Klaus smiled when he saw Gwen and Juniper. "There they are."

"Took you long enough," Rebekah said from where she stood next to her brother, being both bored and annoyed.

Gwen and Juniper walked toward Klaus and Rebekah. The siblings stood beside the truck that they had parked in a near-empty parking lot that appeared to not be used, since there were only two other cars in the lot. Inside the truck were the coffins, along with an unconscious Stefan who had not had the best trip. All the way to Virginia, all three girls steered clear of Klaus when he released his frustrations on the younger vampire.

"Excuse us for eating something. Unlike either of you, we actually need to eat every once in a while," Juniper said as she found a seat on the hood of a car parked next to the truck. "We can die if we don't."

"We do have some information," Gwen told Klaus.

"What did you find?" asked Klaus.

"We found that girl Juniper saw wearing the necklace," Gwen answered. "I think her name's Elena."

Klaus' face fell as his eyes became blank, turning away from the women as he began to pace in front of them with slow steps. While he already had an idea of what Stefan had been hiding from him, it only angered him more to know that his speculations were proven true. Now, he had to think about what he wanted to do moving forward. It was all supposed to be easy to figure out and deal with, since he could just kill the supposed-to-be-dead doppelgänger and figure out his hybrid problem with Juniper's help, but he was also angry.

Gwen stepped closer to Klaus, placing a hand on a mumbling Klaus' arm. "Nik?" He turned to her, ceasing his pacing. "What do we do now?"

The hybrid took a moment to calm himself. "Well, obviously, the doppelgänger being alive has to have something to do with why I can't sire more of my kind." He glanced at Juniper. "Right?"

Juniper hummed. "It's a possibility."

"Elena is the girl you sacrificed?" asked Gwen, trying to make sense of everything so far.

Klaus nodded, recalling how he felt Elena die in his arms during the ritual, which made no sense to him how she could still be alive. "I _thought_ I did."

"Stefan's dead girlfriend?" asked Rebekah, getting even more annoyed.

"Yes, but it seems she's very much alive," Klaus said before he addressed Gwen and Juniper. "Is she a human?"

Juniper nodded. "Very much."

Klaus looked at Gwen. "Did they mention anything else?"

"She's going to a prank thing at her school with her friends tonight," Gwen told him.

Rebekah frowned. "Prank thing?"

"Prank night," Juniper clarified. "It's a thing that students in their last year of high school do before classes start," she explained to the Original vampire. "They go to the school the night before the first day of school and set up pranks for the teachers to find the next day." She shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly. "It's called 'Senior Prank Night'."

"I have to admit, I'm quite jealous of the freedom the youth have in this day and age," said Rebekah, glancing at Klaus. "So, are we crashing this party or what?"

"Okay, before we go guns a blazing," Juniper began as she hopped off the car she was sitting on, looking between both Originals, "we need to know what we're getting ourselves into. Like, how many vampires are in this town? Are there any witches? Werewolves? Anything else that we need to be worried about?" At the exasperated looks she received from the vampires, she scoffed. "I know you guys are practically invincible, but Gwen and I aren't. Excuse me for having a little bit of self-preservation for us."

Now that Juniper brought it up, Rebekah said, "I would also like to know if there are any werewolves. Their bite won't kill me, but I'd rather avoid the pesky side effects."

"Fine," Klaus sighed, placing his hands on his hips, having the attention of all girls on him. "There's Stefan's girl, the doppelgänger. She has two best friends; the witch known as Bonnie Bennett and the baby vampire called Caroline."

"We saw her at the bar," Gwen mentioned. "Caroline, I mean."

"Let's see. Who else?" Klaus hummed as he tried to remember the supernatural residents from when he was in town last time. "There's Stefan's brother, Damon." He released a sound that was between a groan and a sigh. "He might be a nuisance but getting our hands on Elena will keep him in line."

Gwen's brows furrowed. "What do you mean?"

Klaus smirked. "He's in love with the girl."

"His brother's girlfriend?" Juniper asked with her mouth slightly open in shock. At Klaus' nod, she chuckled, "Wow, this town should have a series based on it. I mean, you have everything you need to make it into a supernatural drama series about two brothers in love with the same girl." This had Gwen chuckling, while Klaus tried to conceal the slight twitch of his lips.

Rebekah raised an eyebrow at Klaus, grinning. "Well, it does seem that history loves repeating itself."

Gwen and Juniper looked at Rebekah, both asking simultaneously, "What?"

"She means nothing," Klaus cut in. "My sister has a tendency to recall unnecessary things."

Juniper smirked at the hybrid. "I'd love to hear the rest of that story."

"You never will," Klaus said while giving Juniper a warning glare.

"Any werewolves to watch out for?" asked Rebekah.

"There's only one wolf in town, but I'll need that one alive," Klaus told his sister before turning to Juniper. "We'll use him as our guinea pig for when we get the answer to my problem. What do you think?"

"If he's the only werewolf, then it's best that you don't damage him too much," Juniper mumbled as she thought about what she could do. "Since there is a witch in town, we can use her. Better a witch who knows this town and its spirits to help us figure things out than me, an outsider."

Feeling like everyone was forgetting something particularly important, Rebekah asked, "And my necklace?"

Juniper glanced at Gwen. "Did you see her wearing it?"

Gwen hummed, not recalling seeing the necklace. "I don't know. I don't think so."

"We'll find it, sister," Klaus interrupted Rebekah when he saw her open her mouth to protest, knowing that she would fight tooth and nail for the thing, and she was not above killing anyone for it either. "Besides, once we find the doppelgänger, we'll get the necklace back."

"I would prefer we get it above all else," Juniper said, preferring to use the article of jewelry to get the answers Klaus wanted. Also, it was a powerful item, one that could not be ignored. "It's not just a way to communicate with the Original witch, it's also a powerful magical tool."

"And rip apart whoever has it," added Rebekah.

"Then, what's the plan?" asked Gwen.

"Juniper's with me. We're going to figure things out, scout the place," Klaus began to explain the beginning of his plan. He glanced at Gwen. "You stay with Rebekah and wait as backup." At the narrowed looks he received from the young girl and his sister, he said, "I haven't figured things out yet, so can we please exercise some patience?" He paused when he heard groaning coming from within the truck, so he walked over to it, reaching for the latch to open the backdoor. "Speaking of which." The girls followed him and watched as he jumped into the back of the truck as Stefan slowly regained consciousness.

"Okay, so we don't have much of a plan," Juniper stated, folding her arms over her chest.

Klaus chuckled, shrugging while looking down at Stefan as the younger vampire began to stir awake. "I think that going in guns a blazing might be our best strategy." He crouched next to Stefan. "Hello, friend."

Stefan looked up at Klaus, his eyes squinting as his hand rubbed his healing neck. "Klaus–"

The Original hybrid raised a finger to his lips and hushed the vampire. "Stay quiet. I don't want to snap your neck just yet." He gestured to the three girls standing outside of the truck as Stefan sat up against a coffin. "All right. Let us go back to what we know so far," he said, watching as Stefan turned his attention to the three women. "Anyone care to start?"

"You daggered me and thought I had my necklace with me," Rebekah began.

Klaus sighed. "Yes, which you lost."

"Misplaced, and your fault," countered the blonde vampire.

"You turned into a hybrid and went to make yourself a happy bunch of hybrids, but they died because they found out you're annoying," said Juniper, to which Klaus rolled his eyes at.

Gwen added, "You need the necklace to contact the Original witch to figure out why you can't make hybrids."

"Gloria said the necklace was with a girl," said Klaus.

"I found out that the girl is here in Mystic Falls, who happens to be doppelgänger who is supposed to be dead," said Juniper, which had Stefan's eyes widening in shock as he recalled Klaus showing him where they were when he was last awake before his neck was snapped once more. "Which means," she paused as her eyes met Stefan's, "you lied. So did Gloria, but you took care of that, I assume."

"I think that sums up everything," said Gwen.

Klaus turned to Stefan, grinning. "Are they missing anything?" he asked. "Not that it matters, since I'll get to the bottom of everything very soon."

Stefan looked back to Klaus' looming figure. "I can exp–"

Before another word left Stefan's lips, Klaus snapped his neck. "That's enough of that." He did not want to get even more angry by hearing Stefan's repetitive excuses. He stood up to jump out of the truck and stand in front of his sister, the witch, and the half-faerie.

"What now?" asked Gwen.

Klaus smirked. "We're going to crash a party, make the night a memorable one."

.

Juniper felt an unpleasant shiver go down her spine, prompting her to hug herself and rub her arms as she walked down the school's hallways beside Klaus, both in search of Elena. "Ugh, this place is bringing back some unpleasant memories."

"You mean to tell me that a snarky person like you wasn't liked?" Klaus teased her, looking down another hallway they passed.

"I was a straight-A student in a catholic private school with a rebellious attitude and foster parents with no tolerance for anything that didn't fit their image of a perfect family," she said, remembering how unbearable her life was while living with such strict people. "I had some friends, not the popular crowd but not a crowd you messed with. I did punch a lot of snotty people."

Klaus had to laugh at this. "I take it that your foster parents were not very happy about that."

"No, and they never failed to tell me how much I disappointed them." While Juniper had tried to be grateful, she just couldn't take the rules placed on her when she tried to be good, so she stopped pretending to be someone she wasn't. "After skipping grades and graduating, I went on my own and searched for my real parents. You know the rest."

The hybrid pursed his lips, finding himself sympathizing with her situation. "I can understand that."

"Yeah," Juniper said, clearing her throat as a memory came back to her. She debated on whether she should tell Klaus, but opted to do so, since it was better than him finding out through someone else. "And since we're being honest and open with each other for once, I have a confession to make." Klaus raised an eyebrow at this, slightly frowning. "And there's no need for you to get mad, since nothing bad happened."

"What is it?" asked Klaus, stopping in his tracks to look down at the brunette with his arms folded over his chest.

"I might have been the witch who told your brother where to find the doppelgänger," Juniper said, trying to get it out as fast as possible, but the scowl on Klaus' face told her he heard her loud and clear. "Elijah, I mean."

Klaus didn't know how to react, but his thoughts immediately took him to thinking that she was trying to get rid of him. "Did you also happen to tell him how to kill me?"

"No!" Juniper gasped, but she was now interested to know what kind of spell was strong enough to kill an Original. She shook her head and tried to gain control over her curiosity. "Look, he had come to Chicago looking for you. When he didn't find you, he came to me to find a way to locate you," she explained.

"And you just told him where I was?" Klaus scoffed, turning away from her to pace in a circle before glaring at the witch. "He almost killed me."

Juniper huffed. "Well, _that_ is on whoever helped him, not me. I just pointed him in the right direction to get him away from Gwen."

"And you didn't think to tell me?" asked Klaus. "You know, there are phones for this kind of thing." He placed his hand to his ear, making it seem like it was a phone. "'Why, hello, Klaus. I hope you are having a splendid time breaking your curse, but I should warn you that your brother is trying to find you with murderous intent'."

"I didn't know he had a way to kill you. If I had, I would have warned you," countered Juniper.

Klaus rolled his eyes. "And you couldn't turn him away?"

Juniper gave him a mirthless laugh. "Oh, yeah, that's what I should have done. I should have turned away an Original and _hope_ to live past the exchange."

The hybrid was upset, but he wasn't as upset as he thought he was going to be. Juniper came clean and she had valid reasons to do as Elijah had asked of her. He could also tell that she didn't mean to cause him any harm, she would have done so by now, especially since he had left her to watch over Gwen–a weakness the witch could have exploited long ago.

"So, are we going to move past this or is it going to be a thing?" Juniper asked Klaus, her hands on her hips as she looked up at him expectantly.

Releasing a heavy sigh, Klaus nodded as he began to walk with Juniper following him. "No point in torturing you now."

"Exactly, this is just a tiny thing I forgot to tell you, so now it's a convenient time for me to have done so," said Juniper, causing the hybrid to roll his eyes with an annoyed sigh.

Just as they rounded a corner, Klaus lifted an arm to keep Juniper from walking, his heightened senses picked up on laughter coming from behind double doors that were soon opened by one Elena Gilbert, who lost her smile when she came face-to-face with the smiling hybrid and impassive witch. "There's my girl," he greeted the shocked doppelgänger, watching as all color was drained from the teenage girl's face.

"Klaus!" gasped Elena, eyes wide. She managed to break out of her frozen state, finding strength to turn around and try to run. Even though she knew that there would be no point in running from the hybrid, she still needed to do something…anything. Her sense of survival screamed at her to run away.

Klaus didn't let Elena take a single step as he appeared in her way, glaring down at her. "You are supposed to be dead," he almost growled. "What are we going to do about that?"

"Well, we have our work cut out for us," Juniper said as she stepped closer to Elena, trying to get a feel of the brunette's aura. There was an unsettling _thing_ surrounding the doppelgänger that did not sit well with the witch. "Death follows you," she said, causing Elena to frown. "I wouldn't be surprised if it ever catches up to you."

"Not yet," said Klaus, grabbing Elena's bicep with a vice grip. "We still need her to answer a few questions for us."

Juniper looked at Elena and sighed when she didn't see the girl wearing the necklace. "And things just got complicated."

"What?" Klaus asked with a frown.

"She doesn't have _it_," said Juniper, giving him a pointed look that she also directed at Elena's neck.

"That puts us in quite a pickle." Klaus pulled Elena along with him as he marched through the school hallways with Juniper matching his strides. "You put a large kink in my plans, sweetheart," he told the panting doppelgänger. "The whole point of breaking the curse and becoming a hybrid was to make more hybrids. I haven't been able to do that." He turned a corner sharply, causing Elena to release a hiss at him pulling her arm, which felt like he was cutting off the circulation in her limb. "Now our bet is that it has something to do with the fact that you're still breathing."

"Correction, that's _your_ bet," Juniper spoke up. "I have a different theory."

Klaus glanced at Juniper with a raised eyebrow. "You're telling me that _now_."

Juniper huffed. "Yeah, but I need more info."

"If you're going to kill me, just do it!" Elena hissed at Klaus, glaring at the hybrid.

"Not until my friend and I compare notes, but I do have ways of making you suffer," Klaus told Elena as he pulled her into the school's gym where a few students were setting up cups all over the floor.

Juniper groaned as she watched the students fill the cups with water, coming to a stop next to the bleachers to stare at the excited teenagers. "Seriously? This is the best kids can do these days?"

"What would you do?" Klaus asked Juniper.

"Well," Juniper hummed. "I would do balloons filled with paint and," she paused to point at the ceiling, "have them up there in a net that would release them the moment the gym doors are opened." She grinned at the hybrid. "Water dries, but paint is a bitch to clean up."

He couldn't deny that he was impressed, so Klaus said, "Not bad."

"That's just what's at the top of my head. If you give me more time, I can come up with a better one," said Juniper.

Klaus chuckled as he stepped forward with Elena. He cleared his throat and focused to adjust his voice. "Attention, seniors," he spoke up in the best American accent he could muster, his voice echoing all around the gymnasium and gaining the attention of all students. "You have officially been busted. Prank night is over." All he received were groans and complaints, but the gym was slowly being emptied. "Head on home."

Juniper frowned at Klaus as she came to stand beside him. "Why did you do that?"

"Do what?" Klaus asked her in return, his accent returning.

"Change your accent," Juniper clarified. "I don't get it. It's not like anyone here knows who you are, and I doubt they care."

"It makes me less suspicious," Klaus supplied as he released Elena.

"Right," Juniper mumbled.

Just as two students were about to walk past the hybrid, Klaus stopped them by lifting a hand in front of them. "I remember you two," he said to the two teenagers who looked at him with confused stares, one being a brunette girl and the other a dark-haired boy.

The girl frowned at Klaus, failing to recognize him. "I'm sorry. Who are you?"

"Oh, don't worry, I wasn't in my right head last time we met," Klaus said offhandedly, releasing Elena's arm, confident that she wasn't going to try to escape.

"When _are_ you in your right head?" Juniper taunted the hybrid, folding her arms over her chest.

"Can we not start?" Klaus told Juniper as the witch lifted her hands in surrender. He locked eyes with the girl. "_Lift your foot up, please, Dana_." After saying the words, he smiled when the girl immediately did as he told her before looking at the boy. "If she drops her foot, Chad, I want you to beat her to death. Understood?" He received a slight nod as an answer.

"Don't, Klaus," Elena pleaded. "You don't have to hurt anybody."

Klaus glanced at Elena. "Oh, come on, love. Of course, I do."

Juniper rolled her eyes as she approached Elena. "He always has to hurt others. He's got a bit of a dramatic flair."

"I saw you," Elena said as she stared at a smiling Juniper. The doppelgänger remembered earlier in the day when she had seen the witch leaving the Mystic Grill with another girl. "You were at the Mystic Grill."

"Oh, you saw me," Juniper said, raising an eyebrow. "I'm Juniper Blake, new girl in town."

"With a nasty attitude," added Klaus.

"Look who's talking," countered Juniper as she reached for Elena's hair, eliciting a flinch from the latter. "I'm not hurting you." She grasped a single strand of hair and pulled on it until it was no longer attached to Elena's head, causing the human girl to hiss. "I'm only here to figure out a few things that the great Klaus can't do so by himself."

Klaus merely rolled his eyes at Juniper's comment, but he frowned as he watched the witch gathering Elena's hair between her hands before closing her eyes. "What are you doing?" he asked.

"Concentrating. You said you killed her, so I am just figuring out how she survived," Juniper responded as she focused on her magic and the power surrounding the doppelgänger. It didn't take long for her to find what she was looking for. She opened her eyes and blew into her hands before opening them to let the hair go up in a small, black flame, letting the microscopic ashes fall to the floor. "She's alive at the cost of another's life." She turned to Klaus. "Someone used a spell to give her the life force of another."

"Quite smart, if it weren't such an inconvenience," Klaus remarked, now understanding how Elena survived after having drained her of her life.

"What do we do now?" Juniper asked Klaus.

Klaus grinned and said, "We wait for the rest of the gang."

* * *

_**Rough Translation (French to English):**_

_**Monsieur le capitaine.-Sir captain.**_

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**End of chapter!**

**I hope you all had fun and enjoyed the new chapter! It was a struggle to write and post, but here we finally are. I will also like to thank you guys once more for the support and love!**

**Remember to review and express your thoughts, they help in the writing process and inspiration. Also, Fave and Follow to your liking!**

**See you in the next chapter!**


	7. a prank night gone wrong

**Hello, all! I present to you guys with another update and a few things to say and some announcements. I will be posting this story on Wednesdays. If I miss out on posting on one, the look forward to the next one.**

**ANNOUNCEMENT: I will be posting the original story of Fire In The Water on Friday, but I'll be doing so by posting three chapters every Friday. Also, the chapters will be posted as they were, no revising, since I am full on things to do and I am focusing on this story. AND, to make things clear, I am only posting the stories again as they are. I won't continue to write for that story, but I will apologize for all of those who had supported the original, since they kept it standing for so long and loved the story, so I hope you guys will continue to love this new version (maybe not as much, but enough).**

**Now, on to the review responses:**

**-_Fidjie_: Thanks for the awesome support and love, and I will be trying to focus on how Klaus plans things out and other things that I thought should be interesting to write about that had not been shown on the series. Yes, I am focusing on Juniper for a reason, but only because she isn't the main character and I don't want to create characters and simply throw them in the back (gotta give them purpose). Also, I have already made the announcement on when and how I will be posting the original story, so stay tuned.**

**-_xenocanaan_: I am so glad you love the Gwen/Juniper duo. They're so fun to write together and they won't make things easy for anyone as the story progresses, I can assure you of that.**

**-_GhostGypsy_: Thanks! And yes, June is very sassy and just blunt, which makes it fun to write. Yes, I plan for Gwen to be a game changer as the story progresses, but I will save the spoilers for later. In the announcement, I have stated the when and how of the posting of the original story, so stay tuned.**

**-_Love . Fiction . 2020_: Thanks, love!**

**-_Undercoverlikeaspy_: Aww, I am so glad I was able to stop the wait for you, so I hope you love the story!**

**-_PrincessMagic_: There will be a lot more of Gwen and Rebekah, I promise. I am very excited to write these two together!**

**-_Lilomaus223_: The wait is over! Love your love! And you will get your wish and see a bit of her powers. I'm trying to make it all natural and just pace myself with it, since there are spoilers involved. And yes, there will be a lot of focus on Gwen and Rebekah, they're just too fun to write together and have them bond and stuff.**

**Disclaimer: ****I own nothing from The Vampire Diaries and claim no ownership over anything pertaining to it. I only own my characters.**

* * *

_a prank night gone wrong_

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.

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Gwen stared up at the dark sky speckled with stars from where she sat on the edge of the back of the truck that Klaus was using to transport the coffins that held four of his daggered family members, swinging her legs back and forth. Her fingers played with the wolf charm of her bracelet that was on her right wrist, finding herself a bit bored of waiting. Instead of sitting, Rebekah stood inside the back of the truck while leaning against the wall with her arms crossed over her chest. Silence drifted between the two ever since Klaus left with Juniper to go into the school, having assigned the job of watching over Stefan's prone body to the human-faerie hybrid and Original vampire.

"So, you've never gone to school," Rebekah stated, breaking the silence.

"Nope," Gwen said as she looked at the building in front of them from the parking lot. "Nik thought it'd be best to be homeschooled, that I would graduate quicker and have a better education."

"Or keep you holed up," said Rebekah.

Gwen nodded, unable to disagree with her statement. "That was another perk for him."

Rebekah's lips quirked up a bit, not at all surprised by Klaus wanting to keep Gwen from the world and everyone in it. "My brother is quite overprotective, sometimes to the point of sucking the life out of you." She noticed how Gwen was fidgeting uncomfortably, so she sighed. "I apologize. I shouldn't be talking about him like that in front of you when he," she paused as a smile of disbelief graced her lips, "actually took time to raise a child. I am still blown away by that."

"No, it's all right," Gwen told Rebekah, glancing at the blonde vampire. "I understand why you're upset with him. I can't imagine living the way I have with him for a thousand years and not feel some resentment, but he does try to do better."

"You sound like Elijah," said Rebekah, rolling her eyes, but in a playful manner.

"Your brother?" Gwen asked for confirmation.

"Yes, the noblest of our bunch," Rebekah answered. "He's always tried to look for the good in Niklaus, no matter how small the glimmer is." She cleared her throat and turned to Gwen. "So, on to less dull subjects. I've seen what faeries can do, but you're only half. What can you do?"

Gwen hummed as she hopped off the truck, landing on the concrete ground. She adjusted her navy-blue tank top that she had paired with skinny jeans and black booties. The young girl looked up at Rebekah. "I can't do magic like a witch, I don't use words, but the elements respond to me," she explained as she lifted a hand up to her chest. "June described it as nature's power coursing through me and manifesting into whatever I need." She felt the familiar tingle and warmth of her power grow in her hand. "But I do have a power that witches don't."

Rebekah's eyes widened when she saw Gwen's hand begin to glow a beautiful array of shades of green tones with blue undertones appearing closer to her skin. The vampire's eyes squinted the more she looked at the light the halfling was emitting from her palm, something she had not seen for a thousand years. "Beautiful, yet deadly," she whispered as the stared at Gwen, feeling like her eyes would burn if she continued to gaze straight into the light any longer.

The young half-faerie closed her hand into a fist, and the light disappeared. Gwen looked up at the blonde vampire. "For some reason, I can't really get a hang of it. Every time I use my power, I feel strange, like I'll lose control." This had Rebekah frowning, since she knew that faeries had perfect control of their power with nature at their beck and call. "Even June can't figure out what's wrong exactly." She placed her hand on the left side of her lower abdomen. "She thinks it has to do with my birthmark, but she's not so sure."

"It can be that you are half-human," Rebekah offered as an explanation. "While faeries have procreated with humans, it was not the norm. They always kept to their own kind after so many years of persecution. You have pure fae blood running through your veins, and it might just be causing a war within your own body."

"Makes sense," Gwen mumbled, having heard of this from Juniper and Gloria before.

"Well, you can certainly harm vampires with that skill," Rebekah praised, referring to the light Gwen had created a few moments ago. "That light is as potent as the sun, and even daylight rings can be rendered useless against it."

"I can attest to that," Gwen told her, and Rebekah frowned. "I've encountered vampires before. I've never killed them, but they still burn." She could feel her fingers shaking and her breathing to slightly quicken as her heart started to accelerate. She shook her head to keep herself from remembering memories that only brought her pain. "Some unpleasant memories." She rubbed her own arm to seek some comfort.

"Yes, vampires have always had a weakness for faeries," Rebekah sighed, having seen more than her fair share of dead pureblood faeries die at the hands of vampires and witches. "But witches have also contributed to their extinction, thinking that a faeries power was theirs to use however they saw fit for being 'Nature's servants'." She scoffed. "Nature's servants killing Nature's children."

Gwen nodded, also recalling her encounter with a coven in Seattle. "I've also haven't had any good experience with witches…except for June. She's the only witch I know who doesn't care about what I am."

"Yes, she seems like a reliable girl. I'm liking her more and more," said Rebekah.

"Really?" Gwen smiled at the vampire. "Or do you like her because she makes it a hobby to push Nik's buttons?"

Pained groans came from behind Rebekah, causing both girls to find Stefan coming out of unconsciousness. His neck finally healed once more from having its bones broken for the umpteenth time by Klaus. He rubbed his sore neck as his eyes fluttered open but catching a glimpse of Rebekah had him sucking in a sharp breath as he became alert and sat up. He looked around, trying to remember what happened last, but he was suddenly filled with dread when he saw the familiar building of Mystic Falls High School.

"Oh, he lives," Rebekah said as she turned to Stefan, pushing away from the truck's wall.

"What happened?" Stefan asked, looking around for Klaus.

"You took a beating," Rebekah told him. "My brother's been breaking your neck all afternoon. Quite the temper."

Stefan took in large gulps of air as his body reanimated itself as he stood up. "Why did he bring us back to Mystic Falls?"

Rebekah gave him an unamused stare. "You can stop playing dumb now."

"We already figured out everything you've been lying about," Gwen spoke up.

"I haven't been lying about anything," Stefan argued, itching to get out of the truck and warn everyone about Klaus being back in town, hoping he wasn't too late. "I've done everything Klaus has asked me to."

"No, you just failed to mention that the doppelgänger's still alive," Rebekah said as she came to stand in front of Stefan. "Among other things." This silenced Stefan.

Gwen raised an eyebrow at Stefan. "And I thought _I_ was a terrible liar, and I can't lie."

Stefan turned away from Rebekah, thinking about what his next move should be. He knew he was no match for an Original vampire, but he thought he could catch her by surprise, which would leave Gwen to take care of. "Where is Klaus now?" he asked.

"With any luck, ripping that cow's bloody head off," Rebekah replied.

Anger and desperation engulfed Stefan from within, and so he responded by rushing at Rebekah, causing both to fly out of the truck and onto the ground with him on top of her, landing hard on the concrete. Gwen had to step to the side a bit when the two vampires soared into the air to land on the ground, but she felt helpless when she couldn't think of a way to help the Original vampire.

"Rebekah!" Gwen gasped.

"Where is she?" Stefan growled at Rebekah as he secured his hands around the latter's wrists to keep her in place.

"You really do love her, don't you?" Rebekah grunted as she easily overpowered Stefan and pushed him against the truck. She grabbed a crowbar from the truck and slammed it against his head before hooking it behind his neck to pull him closer to her. "Consider me jealous," she hissed as she took the crowbar from his neck and rammed it through his stomach, watching as he fell to the ground with a groan to die until his body healed. "That was a good outlet," she sighed as she turned to a slightly shocked Gwen.

The ringing of a phone startled Gwen, so she reached into her jean's pocket to take it out and answer the call. "Hey, Nik," she greeted.

"_I have the doppelgänger, but I have yet to find the werewolf_," Klaus said with a sigh. "_Tell Rebekah to fetch him for me_."

"I'm not a dog," Rebekah huffed, having heard her brother.

"_I need you to get him, please. He's somewhere inside the school, probably with his girlfriend_," he said to Rebekah, now knowing that she was listening in. "_It won't be long before the rest of our audience arrives_."

"Okay," Gwen said before hanging up and storing it back in her pants' back pocket, not letting him say anything else.

Rebekah groaned as she began walking toward the school. "Let's go, pet," she told Gwen, the halfling quick to follow the Original. "I can't wait for this night to be over."

"Yeah," Gwen mumbled as she passed Stefan's still body. "You and me both."

Gwen and Rebekah entered the school, walking past grumbling students who complained about having been caught and their prank night being over. They walked through many hallways, many of them lined with lockers with their footsteps echoing. Gwen was inspecting everything around her, having never been inside a school before. And although it felt like they were in a maze, it wasn't long before both girls stumbled upon a couple kissing with the girl pressed against a door.

"You two are adorable," Rebekah announced herself, interrupting the teenage couple as she walked toward them with Gwen behind her.

The couple looked at the new arrivals, the girlfriend stepping up with a frown. "Uh, do we know either of you?"

"You're Caroline, Elena's friend," Gwen said as she recognized the blonde who had accompanied Elena to the Mystic Grill.

"Which makes you," Rebekah said as she looked at the boyfriend, "Tyler, the werewolf."

Caroline carefully stepped in front of Tyler in a protective stance, her eyes shifting between Rebekah and Gwen. "And who are you two?"

"Didn't you get the memo? We're the new girls," said a grinning Rebekah before her face morphed with eyes reddening and veins protruding from beneath her eyes as she sped over to Caroline, breaking the other blonde's neck.

"Caroline!" Tyler tried to reach for his girlfriend, but he was suddenly grasped by the neck with a hand twisted behind his back.

"That was easy," Rebekah said as she glanced at Gwen as she held onto Tyler.

Gwen nodded. "I thought I could have helped, but you got everything covered."

Rebekah shrugged her shoulders. "Being as old as I am does have its advantages." She looked at Tyler and began directing him toward the gymnasium. "Let's go, pup. We don't want my brother anymore moodier than he already is."

As Gwen and Rebekah made their way to the gym with Tyler, Klaus and Juniper were waiting for their arrival while watching over Elena. A compelled Dana had sweat coating her skin, now struggling more to stay balanced. She was beginning to lose feeling in both of her legs for staying in the same position for so long, her hands now outstretched at her sides to keep herself balanced due to the numbness making it more difficult for her to stay on one foot. It didn't help that she had Chad watching her, waiting to see if she would drop her foot to beat her to death.

"Keep it up," Klaus warned Dana.

"Where's Stefan?" Elena asked Klaus, scared to know the answer. "What did you do to him?"

"Stefan's on a time out," Klaus told her.

Juniper scoffed. "Seriously, you have two friends in danger right in front of you," she told Elena. "Worry about the undead boyfriend later."

Elena was about to argue with Juniper, but doors opening drew her attention to see Bonnie and Matt enter the gymnasium. "Bonnie, get out of here!" she found herself yelling, even though she knew that it would be pointless.

Klaus appeared behind a surprised Bonnie who gasped as she faced him, but she regained her composure and kept her back straight as she squared up to the immortal hybrid. "Ah, I was wondering when you'd show up. Now we can get started." He glanced at Dana and said, "_Dana, why don't you relax? You and Chad sit tight_." The hybrid's words had a quick effect as Dana crumbled to the floor with Chad's help, her legs giving out beneath her. Klaus looked back at Bonnie and asked, "I assume you're the reason Elena's still walking around alive?"

"That's right," Bonnie told him, her voice firm. "If you want to blame someone, blame me."

"Oh, there's no need for blame, love," Klaus said to Bonnie. "Just your witchy interference seems to have caused some undesirable side effects." This had Bonnie frowning in confusion. "And since you caused the problem, I'm going to have you find the fix."

Just then, the doors were opened once more to reveal Rebekah dragging a struggling Tyler into the gym with Gwen following behind. Klaus frowned when he saw the halfling, thinking that she would have stayed outside. When he locked eyes with Gwen, he could tell that she knew what he was thinking by how she averted her eyes away from his. The hybrid made a mental note to talk to her about it later.

"Get off me!" Tyler snapped at Rebekah as he tried to shake her off, but he couldn't even move an inch out of her tight grasp.

"Hush now," she told Tyler.

Klaus gestured to Rebekah and all eyes fell on his sister. "I'd like you all to meet my sister Rebekah." He opted to also point to Gwen. "And this is my dear friend, Gwen Moone." The halfling waved a hand as she walked over to Juniper. "Word of warning, my sister can be quite mean."

Rebekah gave Klaus a halfhearted glare. "Don't be an ass." She pushed Tyler toward Klaus.

"Leave him alone!" Elena said, but her words were not heeded.

"I'm going to make this very simple," Klaus said as he dragged Tyler a bit away from the group by his neck. "Every time I attempt to turn a werewolf into a vampire-hybrid, they die during the transition," he explained. "It's quite horrible, actually." He bit his wrist and shoved it against Tyler's mouth, forcing him to drink his blood while the werewolf's friends watched helplessly. "I need you to find a way to save my hybrids, Bonnie," he said to the Bennett witch. "And for Tyler's sake," he paused as he pulled his wrist away from Tyler to grab his chin, "you better hurry." He twisted the teenager's head and let his dead body fall, eliciting shocked gasps from the town's residents and a flinch from Gwen.

"That was dramatic," Juniper remarked.

Gwen sighed as she stared at the dead werewolf's body. "Did you have to kill him?" she asked Klaus as he approached her. "I thought there weren't other wolves in town. What if this one dies like the rest?"

"First of all, I thought that it was blatantly obvious that I wanted you to stay in the truck," Klaus told Gwen. "And second, this will get them more motivated without the possibility of them to look for a way to save their friend."

Rebekah appeared next to her brother. "I suggest we kill the doppelgänger. That will probably solve your problem."

"I don't think so," said Juniper, now becoming the center of her companions' attention.

"What do you mean?" Klaus asked the witch.

"It has to do with the way a witch does her spell," Juniper explained. "I'm going to need you to tell me again everything about your curse and the ritual."

While Matt crouched next to Tyler's body, Elena and Bonnie stood beside him, staring down at their dead friend. The three teenagers were trying to grasp what just happened, but they just couldn't believe that their friend had just been killed and would soon be in transition.

"He killed him," said Matt, his voice almost breaking.

"He's not dead," Elena said as she began to pace. "Klaus' blood will turn him into a vampire."

"And if Bonnie or my witch is successful, he'll live through his transition," Klaus said as he approached the teenagers, deciding it was best to get things moving. "Go on, then," he said as he looked at Bonnie before walking over to Elena to grab her arm. "Go and fetch your grimoires and enchantments and what-not. I'll hold on to Elena." Said brunette gasped when he pulled her close to him. "For safekeeping."

Bonnie shared a hesitant look with Elena, not wanting to do anything for Klaus, let alone leave Elena alone with him and his companions. She was about to argue, but Elena shook her head at her and looked at Matt before glancing at the gym's doors, a clear message telling the Bennett witch to leave with their friend. Bonnie exhaled and grabbed Matt's hand, pulling him along with her to leave the gym.

"So, this is the latest doppelgänger," Rebekah said close to Elena's ear, causing the girl to gasp in surprise. The Original vampire looked the brunette from top to bottom with a scrutinizing gaze. "The original one was much prettier," she remarked snidely.

"Enough, Rebekah," Klaus sighed, not wanting his sister to bring things up from their past. "Take the wolf boy elsewhere, would you?" Rebekah smiled mockingly before doing as her brother asked by grabbing Tyler's arm and dragging his body behind her. "Just ignore her," he whispered to Elena while watching his sister leave. "Petty little thing."

"Klaus," Juniper said to gain his attention, motioning for him to follow her to the bleachers with a jerk of her head. The hybrid and halfling followed the witch to the seats to get out of the humans' earshot, leaving Elena to go over to Dana and Chad to offer some comfort to her frightened classmates. "Okay, let's think this through," she began as Klaus and Gwen sat down, but the witch preferred to stand, since moving helped her think things through. "Your mother was the Original witch."

"Correct," said Klaus, nodding as he placed his elbows on his knees.

"She cursed you to suppress your werewolf side," Juniper continued, glancing at Klaus. "Why?"

Klaus shrugged. "She hated me."

Juniper nodded. "Okay, so she cursed you with the same ingredients you'd need to break such a curse."

"A vampire, a witch, a werewolf and the doppelgänger," Gwen supplied. "The vampire and werewolf to represent him with a witch that binds them with the blood of a doppelgänger."

"Yes, but he's not supposed to have problems creating more hybrids, since it's the same process as a vampire creating more of their own kind," Juniper rambled. "Vampire blood creates more vampires, so the blood of a hybrid should create more hybrids, unless…" she trailed off as she frowned when an idea came to her, which had her stop pacing.

"Unless what?" Gwen asked.

"Unless the witch who cursed you added another detail in her spell," Juniper said as she faced Klaus. "You said she hated you, so it's not farfetched to assume that she would make things even more difficult for you, right?"

Klaus nodded, now realizing what she was getting at.

"You mean that the Original witch made it so that Nik wouldn't be able to create more hybrids?" Gwen asked Juniper.

"Yes, but witches are required to make things fair, keep a balance," Juniper continued with her rant. "Klaus should still be able to create hybrids, but it seems that it's not that simple." She looked at Klaus. "The werewolves you've turned make it into transition."

Klaus hummed. "Yes, but they die, even after feeding on human blood."

"Okay, so your blood can still make hybrids. The problem is in the final act," Juniper whispered and began to pace once more, feeling like the answer was right there. She just needed to make sense of her jumbled thoughts to get to her answer. "Okay, so vampires originate from the Original family."

"Also created by the Original witch," said Klaus.

"When you guys were first turned, what did you drink to complete the transition?" Gwen asked Klaus.

Juniper looked at Gwen with wide eyes before glancing at Klaus. "What was it?"

Klaus sighed as he thought back to the village girl he was forced to feed on after he had been killed. "Human blood."

"Exactly!" Juniper shrieked, but she calmed down as a grin appeared on her lips.

"You didn't feed on human blood to break your curse and turn into a hybrid," Gwen said as she looked at Klaus.

Juniper exhaled a laugh, feeling rather exhilarated. "Damn, I'm good."

"So, the ritual required you to kill the doppelgänger, which would destroy any chance of you being able to make more hybrids," Gwen wondered out loud. "This is the way the Original witch wanted to punish you."

The doors to the gym were opened once more as Stefan appeared. His presence wasn't at all surprising for Klaus, Gwen and Juniper, but Elena was shocked to see him there after so long of being forced to stay apart. Oh, how she longed to have him back, but under better circumstances where they would both live to see the next day.

"Stefan," Elena whispered as she stood up, her eyes trained on the man she was still in love with.

Stefan looked Elena over and breathed a sigh of relief when he saw her unharmed, but he quickly turned his gaze to the quiet hybrid. "Klaus."

"Come to save your damsel, mate?" Klaus asked offhandedly, placing his chin on the interlaced fingers of his hands.

"I came to ask for forgiveness," Stefan told Klaus, slowly approaching the hybrid. "And pledge my loyalty."

Juniper raised an eyebrow at the vampire. "You can at least _try_ to make it believable."

"I agree," Klaus sighed.

"Elena means nothing to me anymore," Stefan said, briefly looking over at Elena before his eyes went back to Klaus. "And whatever you ask of me, I will do."

"Fair enough. Let's drink on it." Klaus stood up and walked over to Elena and the shaking forms of Dana and Chad. "Kill them," he told Stefan as he pointed at Dana and Chad, causing the students to stand up in fright.

"Nik," Gwen tried to protest as she stood up, but Juniper placed a hand on her shoulder to keep her from getting any closer to where Klaus was.

Seeing Stefan's hesitation, Klaus further urged him, saying, "What are you waiting for? Kill them."

"No. Stefan, don't." Elena shook her head, giving worried glances to Dana and Chad over her shoulder. "He's not going to hurt me. He already said–"

Klaus slapped Elena so hard that she fell on the floor with a sharp cry and solid thud, his anger fueling his actions. This spurred Stefan to try and tackle Klaus with his fangs out, but he instead felt a blinding pain on his back that had him lose his footing and drop to his knees with a grunt, feeling as if scalding water had been poured down his back. Klaus and Juniper turned to a panting Gwen to see her with an arm stretched out and her hand glowing green, recognizing that she had used her power.

"It's okay," Juniper whispered to Gwen as she placed her hands on the latter's shoulders. "He's fine."

Gwen nodded as she lowered her arm, having panicked when she saw Stefan about to attack Klaus, which was something she couldn't allow to happen. "I kind of lost it," she told Juniper.

Juniper smiled. "We all do at some point."

"She means nothing to you?" Klaus grabbed Stefan by his neck, trying to keep his temper in check. "Your lies just keep piling up."

"Let her go!" Stefan pleaded through a wheeze, trying to get Klaus' hands off his throat. "I'll do whatever you want, you have my word!"

"Your word doesn't mean much," Klaus spat at the man he thought was his friend. "I lived by your word all summer, during which time I never had to resort to this." He locked eyes with Stefan, the latter's eyes widening when he realized what Klaus was about to do. "_Stop fighting_." The hybrid's smooth words reached the vampire's ears.

Stefan tried to look away. "Don't do this, don't do this."

"I didn't want to," Klaus retorted. "All I wanted was your allegiance, but now I'm going to have to take it."

"Don't," Stefan begged, trying and failing to change Klaus' mind.

"_You will do exactly as I say when I say it_," Klaus told Stefan, his compulsion already washing over the young vampire. "_You will not run, you will not hide, you will simply obey_." He released Stefan, who now sported a blank look.

"Stefan," Elena called him with a hand placed over her throbbing cheek, watching as Stefan's eyes focused on Dana and Chad, his vampiric features manifesting.

"Now kill them, ripper," Klaus told Stefan as he gestured to the shaking students.

Stefan's predatory eyes fell on Dana before he rushed at her and sank his teeth into her neck, drinking her blood. After the large gulps he took, Dana was dead the moment her body fell at his feet. Elena watched him do this in disbelief from the floor, since her legs failed to lift her up due to the shock of having been hit. She had never seen this side of Stefan before and she would be lying if she wasn't a bit frightened by him with crimson liquid staining his lips.

From afar, Gwen and Juniper watched as Stefan directed his attention to Chad, proceeding to feed from the boy. Gwen had to look away this time, having had no time to react when Stefan fed from Dana. This wasn't the first time she had been placed in a situation like this, but that didn't mean that she was comfortable with anything that was happening, which was why she became frustrated that no one was telling Klaus what he wanted to know. From her standpoint, everyone would be better off giving him whatever he wanted and then he'd be off. She knew from personal experience that Klaus always got what he wanted.

Juniper glanced at Gwen and squeezed the younger girl's shoulder. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." Gwen nodded, wrapping her arms around her middle. She looked at Klaus' back. "It's just been a while since I've seen him like this."

"I know," Juniper sighed. "But it'll be over soon."

"It's always nice to see a vampire in his true element," Klaus said to Elena from where he was crouched next to her trembling form on the floor. "The species has become such a broody lot."

"No." Elena shook her head, her cool hand still placed over her warm cheek. "You did this to him," she said with her voice wavering as she watched Stefan finish feeding on Chad.

"I invited him to the party, love," Klaus countered as he stood up with Elena managing to climb to her feet. "He's the one dancing on the table."

"You still invited him!" Juniper called, causing Klaus to roll his eyes.

"Where is it?!" Rebekah shouted as she marched into the gym with a phone in her hand, her stomping feet headed to Klaus and Elena, but her murderous intent was solely focused on the confused doppelgänger. "Where's my necklace?" Her question had Gwen and Juniper sharing confused looks.

"What are you talking about?" Klaus asked his sister. "They don't have it."

"_She_ knows where it is," Rebekah argued as she gave Caroline's phone to Klaus. "Look."

Klaus plucked the phone from Rebekah's hand where it showed a picture of Elena and Stefan smiling together. Gwen and Juniper appeared by his sides, also looking at the picture. The hybrid's eyes went to Elena's neck on the picture and zoomed in to find what he had been looking for. "Well, well," he hummed as he handed the phone to Juniper. "There it is. We've been looking for the bloody thing for a long while."

"Where is it?" Rebekah asked Elena, her tone of voice chilling enough to send a shiver down the latter's spine.

"I don't have it anymore," Elena told the fuming vampire.

"You're lying!" Rebekah yelled before she sank her fangs into Elena's neck out of anger.

Klaus grabbed his sister and pulled her off Elena to take her a bit to the side. "Knock it off!"

"Make her tell me where it is, Nik!" Rebekah raged, but he could see in her eyes how important the piece of jewelry was to her.

The hybrid was on the brink of losing his patience with everyone, but he took a deep breath and turned to face Elena, who was cowering on the floor with a hand over the open wound on her neck. "Where's the necklace, sweetheart?" Klaus asked her as he crouched in front of her, his chin on his hands. "Be honest."

"I'm telling the truth," Elena answered, a small whimper leaving her. "Katherine stole it."

"Katherine?" Gwen asked, the name sounding familiar.

"Yes, Katerina," Klaus exhaled heavily. "The doppelgänger that came before this one. Well, this is unfortunate. We need that necklace, which would make things much easier to clear up. But, since we're doing this the hard way, let's put a clock on it, shall we?" He walked over to the gym's clock, pushing a few buttons that made a loud buzzing sound echo as a timer appeared on the clock. Once that was done, he walked over to Stefan. "Twenty minutes. If Bonnie hasn't found a solution to compare with my witch's, _I want you to feed again_," he told Stefan as he locked eyes with the vampire. "Only this time, _I want you to feed on Elena_." He smirked as he glanced at the doppelgänger. "You know you want to."

"No, Klaus!" Elena begged. "Don't do this to him!"

"No one leaves," Klaus said as he began to make his way out of the gym, placing a hand on Gwen's back to take her with him. Rebekah and Juniper followed behind Klaus as he pointed at Elena while walking by her. "If she tries to run, fracture her spine." He left the gym with everyone else, leaving Elena alone with Stefan.

"Do you really want to do that?" Juniper asked Klaus as she followed him like everyone else.

"Do what?" asked Klaus.

Juniper frowned. "If my theory is correct, then you need the doppelgänger alive."

"That bloody cow can rot," said Rebekah, rubbing Elena's blood from her lips.

"Nik," Gwen began as she walked beside Klaus. "You might need her alive to make the hybrids. She may be the one they need to drink from to complete their transition, like you." Klaus stopped walking to face her. "Letting her die will ruin that for you."

Klaus sighed as he rubbed his temples, feeling a headache coming from the night's events. "All right." He looked at Rebekah. "Take Gwen and June. Watch over the werewolf and look for any signs of death."

"What about you?" Gwen asked him.

"I'll go find the Bennett witch," Klaus answered before taking his leave.

The three women watched him disappear when he turned a corner before Rebekah cleared her throat. "Let's go and wait for this night to end." She began to make her way to the classroom Caroline took Tyler's body. "I'm about done with this whole thing."

Gwen nodded with a sigh. "I couldn't agree more."

Juniper followed the two girls and arrived in a classroom that looked to be used as a laboratory, finding a distraught Caroline watching over her boyfriend after having placed him on top of a table. The place was silent, since everyone was exhausted after the events that took place, except for the immortal vampires who possessed more stamina and didn't get tired as quickly as humans.

"How long until time's up?" Rebekah asked Gwen and Juniper as the three of them sat on a table, giving Caroline her space.

Juniper pulled out the phone that had Elena and Stefan's picture, placing a timer on it before handing it to Rebekah. "Here, you can keep track with this."

Rebekah made a surprised sound as she fiddled with the phone. "Honestly, I am in awe with how much technology has advanced."

"Wait till you see a computer," Gwen told Rebekah, receiving a frown. "I'll explain it later. It's going to be a lot for you to take in."

"Why are you doing this?" Caroline asked, having worked up the nerve.

"Well, I am doing this to help the friend of a friend and give an old lady the best for what remains of her life," Juniper told the vampire, turning on her seat to face her.

"Helping a friend," said Gwen.

Rebekah sighed, "Helping an obnoxious brother."

Caroline couldn't accept those answers, not when her boyfriend lied dead in front of her. "Why kill Tyler?"

"Unfortunately for him, he's the only werewolf in town," Juniper answered, taking her brown hair and dividing it in three sections to put it in a braid over her shoulder. "And we need to test out a few theories." She gave the blonde girl a comforting smile. "Look, if he's able to turn into a hybrid, he won't suffer from the werewolf curse every full moon."

"But there's no guarantee," argued Caroline.

"Take it up with my brother," Rebekah told her. "He's the one who broke his neck."

Silence engulfed the whole room once more, not a single word being exchanged between the women. Caroline went back to worrying about Tyler. Juniper roamed around the room. And lastly, Gwen sat beside Rebekah, teaching the vampire how to use the phone and its many apps.

Suddenly, Tyler gasped awake and began to cough, startling Caroline and Gwen. "Where am I?" he asked as Caroline helped him sit up. He placed his hands over his chest and looked around, gasping for air, as if he had been holding his breath underwater for too long. He felt strange, since his skin crawled and screamed at him that something was wrong. He felt wrong in his own body, and nothing was making sense. "What happened?" he asked Caroline after calming down enough to focus on her.

"Tyler," Caroline whispered, her eyes filled with sadness, unable to even come up with a way to begin to explain what was happening to him.

"Don't be shy about it," Rebekah spoke up, smiling at the couple.

Tyler looked up at Caroline. "What's going on?" He couldn't even remember what he was doing before darkness clouded his vision.

"Klaus is turning you into a vampire," Caroline told him, opting to be direct.

"A hybrid," Juniper corrected as she approached the couple with her hands raised in surrender when she saw Caroline's glare. "I come in peace. I need to make sure that he's not already dying." She looked at Tyler and placed a hand on his cold forehead, which was an abnormal temperature for a werewolf, but not for one who was dead. "You're in transition." Tyler's eyes widened, feeling for his heart and finding it beating. "And there's nothing out of the ordinary so far."

"Don't leave out the hard part," said Rebekah. "You'll only survive if your witch is successful or if Juniper," she said as she pointed at said witch, "is right. If not, you're pretty much dead."

"Rebekah," Gwen whispered to the Original. "You can be a little tactful."

Rebekah shrugged her shoulders with pursed lips. "It's the truth, no point in sugarcoating it."

"Please, try," Juniper told her as she sat on a stool near the couple to monitor Tyler.

"You're going to be okay," Caroline said to a panicking Tyler when she heard his heartbeat pick up. "Hey." She carded her fingers through his hair before cupping his face to have him look at her. "It's going to be okay." She helped him off the table before he placed his head on it, trying to stay calm.

"I wonder how that witch is doing," Rebekah said as she pulled up the timer Juniper had put in the phone, showing to everyone else that only two minutes remained. "Tick tock goes the gym clock." She looked at the phone and waited for the two minutes to be over. "And my necklace is still lost."

"We'll find it," Gwen said as she carefully placed a hand on the Original's arm.

"You're too kind, pet," Rebekah said, smiling at Gwen.

Just then, Klaus entered the classroom. "Well, the verdict's in," he announced, holding a vial filled with a red liquid. "The Original witch says the doppelgänger should be dead."

Rebekah perked up at this as she stood up to approach her brother with a happy smile. "Does that mean we can kill her?"

"No, I'm fairly certain that June's theory has been proven to be the correct one," Klaus said as he looked at Juniper.

Gwen stood beside Juniper, glancing at the vial in Klaus' hands. "So that means that you need her alive."

"What?" Rebekah scoffed as she grabbed Caroline to pull her away from Tyler, easily restraining the younger vampire.

"I am just too good!" Juniper laughed, patting Tyler's back. "You get to live."

"Here we are," Klaus said as he showed the tube he was carrying to Tyler. "Elena's blood. Drink it."

"No, no, no," Caroline protested as she shook her head. "Tyler, don't!"

Juniper glanced at Caroline. "He _will_ die if he doesn't. There's nothing to lose."

"Consider this the conclusion of our experiment," Klaus said as he handed over the vial to Tyler.

Tyler looked at the tube and its contents, feeling slight disgust, but he was even more disgusted by the fact that his mouth watered when the blood's scent reached his nose. He didn't want to be a vampire, but he didn't want to die. Seeing no other option, he took the tube to his mouth and drank the blood. He wanted to spit out the blood, but he swallowed it, and then his body began to tremble and shake. The werewolf groaned as he fell to the floor, prompting Juniper to push Gwen behind her and Rebekah to tighten her hold on Caroline as they all watched Tyler scream and writhe on the floor.

"Is it working?" Gwen asked barely above a whisper.

After screaming at the sudden changes his body was going through and the intense pain that came and went, Tyler was overcome with blinding relief. He held his head as he managed to sit up on his knees. He screamed once more and lifted his head with a snarl, revealing yellow eyes surrounded by black sclera and veins protruding from beneath his golden orbs.

Klaus grinned as he looked down at Tyler. "Well, that's a good sign.

.

"You know, not to brag or anything, but I am just too good," Juniper chuckled as she grinned at Klaus, who resisted the urge to roll his eyes, but he did give her a lopsided smile.

Gwen smiled at the happy witch from her spot next to Rebekah, both sitting on the hood of a car. "Are you happy?" she asked her friend. "I can't tell."

"Well, I am just excited," said Juniper as she came to stand in front of the girls with Klaus next to her. "I mean, I figured out a loophole in a spell that is a thousand years old. I see that as a total win for me." She looked at Klaus. "And I was right. I am _very_ happy just knowing that I was right."

"So, the doppelgänger isn't the problem, her blood is the solution," said Rebekah.

"Seems so," said Klaus, placing his hands on the car.

Gwen looked at Klaus and asked, "Wait, but why did you want to know what the Original witch had to say?"

"It's something that Juniper made me realize earlier," said Klaus. "About how much the Original witch hated me, which made me think about how she would continue to punish me."

Rebekah nodded with a small smile. "A thousand years in the grave and she's still screwing with you."

"Well, it makes sense if you think about it from her perspective," Klaus explained. "It was her failsafe in case I ever broke the hybrid curse. The doppelgänger had to die in order for me to become a hybrid, but if she was dead..." he trailed off.

"Then you couldn't use her blood to sire yourself a new species," Gwen finished for him, recalling the similar statement she made earlier.

Klaus nodded as he exhaled. "Leaving me alone for all time."

"Is that what this is about?" Rebekah asked her brother, her brows furrowing. "Your obsession with hybrids? You just don't want to be alone?"

An awkward pause passed over the group with Juniper looking at her fingers and Gwen staring at Klaus, whereas the siblings stared at one another for a moment.

"What I want is to take my girl, take my hybrid and get the hell out of this one-pony town," Klaus said as he pushed himself off the car to pace for a bit before looking back at his companions. "You know, why don't you, uh, why don't you get the truck?" he suggested to his sister. "I'll get Elena."

Rebekah gave him a pointed look but did as he asked by wordlessly sliding off the car and walking away. Juniper decided that it was best to keep any comment to herself, so she turned around and motioned with her hand that she was going to go with Rebekah.

Gwen stayed behind as she also slid off the car to approach Klaus. "Are you okay?" she asked him, staring into his eyes with worry.

"Of course, I am," he assured her, but she wasn't convinced. He placed a hand on his shoulder. "I am."

She grabbed his hand and stroked it with her thumb. "You're not alone."

Klaus smiled at her. "I know." He jerked his head to the side. "Go on. Make sure those two don't kill each other."

Gwen simply nodded and let go of his hand after giving him a comforting squeeze before she began to make her way to where they had parked the truck. She threw one last glance over her shoulder and saw Klaus still smiling at her, so she turned back to face forward, eager to get back to him. There was something wrong and she didn't want to leave him for too long, feeling like she needed to talk to him, but she could wait for a few moments.

* * *

**End of chapter!**

**I hope you guys enjoyed this longer chapter! We're finally in Mystic Falls, so a lot more will be happening...finally.**

**I enjoy reading your reviews, you guys have no idea how much they help me write. Also, I am so happy with the amount of Follows and Faves, and I hope more will tune in.**

**So, continue to share your thoughts in the reviews, Fave to your hearts content and Follow however much you like.**

**See you in the next chapter!**


	8. hotel salvatore

**Hello, everyone! I hope you're all doing well and are excited for yet another chapter that I hope you'll all like. I'd like to say that I am so happy with the love this story has received, so thank you all for taking the time to read, Fave and Follow and leave amazing comments.**

**Now, on to the response to the awesome reviews:**

**-_xenocanaan_: I love them, too! And they do care a lot about each other, which will be focused on in future chapters. I can't wait for those moments. And I thank YOU for loving it!**

**-_ArtemisLuna85_: Yes, Gwen can be quite protective of the ones she loves and cares about. And her powers will be revealed as the story progresses. They're quite difficult to write, but I will fight to make due and deliver. Thanks for the love!**

**-_Lilomaus223_: Thanks! And I am glad that you like Juniper, since she can be all over the place and voices her thoughts without problem. She's the person that always has something to say, even when it's not needed. And you shall find out more in this chapter, which I hope you'll like!**

**-_Love . Fiction . 2020_: w**

**-_PrincessMagic_: Thanks!**

**-_Courtney-Tamara_: No worries! I'm glad you love the story, but have no fear of disliking things about it. And I am honored to receive the comment, since it means that I am writing the characters with unique personalities. And like any other story or series, there are characters we like and dislike.**

**-_GhostGypsy_: Thanks! And yes, Klaus/Gwen care a lot about each other, but I will leave the extent of it for you guys to experience. Yes, I plan to build Gwen's character as the story progresses, since she has always lived a sheltered life and this is the most she's been involved in Klaus' business and such, so I want her to grow as she meets more people and experiences things outside of the bubble Klaus put her in. And I am so happy you love her and will continue to do so as she grows into her own person. And I love your feedback.**

**-_GreenLilly_: I am glad you're liking the story. The history of the girls is something that I am struggling with, since I need to pick when to give you guys tidbits about it. And I am so glad that you find Gwen and Juniper to be opposites, since I always worry about writing characters as if they were the same person with no unique personalities. And I also love the Gwen/Rebekah relationship, which I will focus on. Well, in regards to ships in my story, I am going to have to surprise you guys, don't want to spoil anything. And yes, there is a Juniper/Damon interaction in this chapter, albeit a bit short, but I hope you still enjoy.**

**-_Guest_: I am very happy that you are!**

**Disclaimer: ****I own nothing from The Vampire Diaries and claim no ownership over anything pertaining to it. I only own my characters.**

* * *

_hotel salvatore_

.

.

.

"You're not coming back for a while?" Gwen hissed into her phone as anger coursed through her veins, which was something that she rarely experienced. She just couldn't believe what was happening to her, a sentiment she shared with Rebekah and Juniper as the witch drove a car–a Honda Accord–that Rebekah had compelled for them. "You left us in a strange town in the middle of the night. We had nowhere to go and had to sleep in a car!" she yelled into the phone, the kinks in her back making her more irritable. "Oh," she hummed mockingly, "but thank you for leaving our bags on the street."

"I like her angry," Rebekah remarked from the passenger seat, glancing to the seat behind her to watch Gwen's forehead creased and her lips pouting.

Juniper chuckled with a nod as she drove to their destination. "She almost never gets like that, but it is entertaining to watch."

"_I already told you why_," Klaus said from the other end of the call.

Gwen scoffed as she watched the scenery go by, trees being what she saw the most. "Yeah, pardon me for having a hard time to swallow that pathetic excuse. You didn't have to leave us behind."

"_I'm coming back, and I won't do so alone_," Klaus tried to explain the best he could. "_I need to gather enough hybrids to battle against Mikael. He has the means to kill me and Rebekah_."

This silenced Gwen, since she understood why he bolted out of town, but she was upset that he left without telling them a single thing and had not picked up their calls. It wasn't until a half hour ago that they heard of him when they had woken up to him calling. "I get that, but you could have _said_ _something_."

"_Look, I am on the hunt for some werewolves to turn, which is a job done best on my own. And you'll be safer with Rebekah and the witch_," Klaus told her, trying to placate her. "_Once I turn a good amount, I will return for you all and deal with Mikael once and for all_."

"We don't even know if they're lying, Nik. They could have been bluffing," Rebekah spoke up for her brother to hear her. The mere thought of her father's name brought unpleasant memories that she would rather just forget, and it even had her fidgeting in her seat as she hid her shaking hand from view and focused on keeping her breathing in check.

Klaus scoffed, loud enough that Rebekah heard him. "_Are you willing to take that chance when it comes to that man?_" Rebekah remained silent, which was answer enough for him. "_I also need you girls to find out what's true and what's false_," he added. "_And just be friendly to the locals_."

"We're your spies now, huh?" asked Gwen, unimpressed.

"He's lucky we're already on top of that," Juniper said as she began to pull up to a large home that was almost hidden within the surrounding forest.

"_What's she talking about?_" Klaus asked after hearing Juniper.

"Details are reserved for those present. You'll only get vague updates," Gwen answered, deciding that it was best not to tell him where they planned to stay. "Have fun on your trip, but don't think I'm done talking about you skipping town like that."

"_Fine, but stay safe_," Klaus said, thinking that it was best not to argue with how upset she was with him. "_Rebekah_," he called with a slight lull to his voice.

Rebekah sighed, "Yes, Nik, I'll keep the little pet out of trouble."

"Bye," Gwen exhaled before hanging up, looking up to find that Juniper had already parked beside the house's entrance. One could say that the home had a creepy feel to it, but the halfling thought otherwise as she found that it had a historic charm to it. "This is the place?"

"Yup," Juniper answered as she put the car in parking, also looking up at the place through the window. She turned on her seat to look at both girls, her eyes shifting between the two. "Are we sure that this is the best plan?" She looked at Rebekah. "You're an Original vampire and very indestructible. I have my magic, but Gwen–"

"Can defend herself," Gwen interrupted her friend, her eyes narrowing. "I have my magic, too."

Juniper gave Gwen a pointed look. "I know, but you and I both that you have problems handling your power. I just think that we can come up with a better way to spy on these people without taking risks, especially when I have to go back home to settle a few things."

Gwen looked down at her hands that were on her lap. She knew that Juniper was right, that her magic was faulty, but she could still defend herself against vampires. It wouldn't be the first time. She was nervous about this, walking into the home of people who were supposed to be their enemies and stay under the same roof. It was nerve-wracking for her, but she took a deep breath to calm herself, thinking that this was also a good opportunity to get Klaus to see that she can take care of herself and that she didn't need to be cooped up for the rest of her life.

"Oh, come now. Let's relax," Rebekah began, speaking mostly to Juniper. "I have no problem in ripping off a few heads to keep my brother's adorable pet safe."

"And _when_ they find out that she's a half-faerie, what do we do then?" asked Juniper. "We don't know what they'll do once they figure it out."

"We'll cross that bridge when we get to it. Faeries are a thing of decades past, and I doubt children really know what to do with one," Rebekah said with a shrug of her shoulders before she raised an eyebrow at Juniper. "You know, if you were to have a temper to match with that paranoia, you would be a bit more like Niklaus."

Juniper's face scrunched up. "Oh, god," she exhaled, giving Rebekah a halfhearted glare. "You did _not_ just compare me to that walking paranoia. I highly doubt I'm as bad as he is." She released a deep exhale and calmed down. "I am just worried, okay?" She glanced at Rebekah. "I can be more than a little concerned when we're on enemy territory."

"We'll be fine as long as us girls sticking together, so don't worry too much," Rebekah told the witch, patting her arm before getting out of the car.

Gwen smiled at Juniper, placing her hand on the latter's shoulder. "It's going to be fine, June."

"We don't know that," Juniper sighed. "You don't have the best track record with vampires. We don't know what these ones are capable of, which worries me."

"What happened with…" Gwen paused and took a deep breath, determined to not let what happened before have any control of her, "Al was a one-time thing."

Juniper turned on her seat to look at Gwen with a scowl. "But that's what almost every vampire does to a faerie, it's why faeries don't do well with vampires. Trust me when I tell you that it can be more than a 'one-time' thing."

Knowing where Juniper was coming from, Gwen couldn't fault her for being on edge and unsure of their plan, but there weren't many options. "I know that," she told her friend as she grabbed the witch's hand over the console that separated the front seats. "But I have you with me…and Rebekah; a _very_ smart witch and an Original vampire."

The witch hummed as a smile began to work its way on her lips. "You flatter me, but that is not going to erase my concerns."

"It's still working," Gwen said with a playful grin.

Tapping on the window of the passenger seat caught the attention of both Gwen and Juniper, which had them look at an impatient Rebekah carrying her own bags that she had taken from the trunk of the car. "We can leave the sentimental talk for later," she said, her voice slightly muffled due to her being outside of the car. "Let's go. I have school to get to and I want to make a good first impression."

"I think you already made a quite memorable first impression," Gwen said as she opened her door to get out.

"Is it a good idea for you to go to school?" Juniper asked as she got out as well, heading for the back of the car where Gwen was already taking out her own bags. "I mean, it's not that great. There's the constant drama, the pressure of wanting to fit in when you consciously know it's not something you _need_ to do but still crave above all else, and then there's the looming pressure of keeping up appearances so that you're not torn apart like piranha bait."

Rebekah smiled widely at this. "Sounds very fun."

"Huh," Juniper hummed while nodding with pursed lips. "You're gonna do so much better than I did." She reached for her own bag and closed the car's trunk. "Word of advice," she said as she approached Rebekah, easily matching her gaze due to being around the same height, "don't hesitate to punch or destroy anyone who messes with you. One smell of weakness and they'll eat you alive."

"I'll keep that in mind," Rebekah said as she shared a smirk with Juniper before glancing at Gwen. "You can come with me."

"I told you," Gwen reminded Rebekah with a smile. "I was homeschooled and graduated."

Rebekah huffed. "It'll be less fun without someone I know sharing in the fun with me."

"Just because I am not going to school with you doesn't mean that you can't invite friends to their parties," said Gwen.

A certain word caught the Original off guard as she stared at Gwen with an uncertain look, her mouth slightly open, since she didn't know how to respond. "'Friends'?"

"Yeah," Gwen said as she frowned at Rebekah with a smile. "Unless we're not."

"No, it's just that," Rebekah began and cleared her throat. "It's been a while since I've been able to call someone my friend."

"Well, you have two now," Juniper said as she patted Rebekah's arm. "Like you said, us girls gotta stick together."

Gwen smiled at Rebekah and followed Juniper to the boarding house before blonde vampire caught up to them with a happy smile on her lips. The three girls approached the front door of the enormous home that fascinated Juniper, given that Rebekah had seen bigger and Gwen had lived in homes just as large if not more with Klaus. Rebekah was the one who knocked on the door, _hard_.

The door was answered by a face that none of the women recognized, but they all could admit that he was quite handsome to themselves in their minds. He was well-built and toned with strong bone structure. He had a light complexion that = greatly contrasted with his dark hair that was almost as black as night that matched rather well with striking, intense blue eyes that one could get lost in. His appearance was quite alluring, but it came and went as the three women walked past him to enter his home.

"Where's Stefan?" Rebekah asked just as she reached what appeared to be a living room where the vampire she was looking for was relaxing on a sofa with three women covered in what she assumed was their own blood playing _Twister_ on the floor in front of him.

The sight in front of them had Gwen's face scrunching up in disgust and Juniper rolling her eyes, not at all surprised by the vampire's antics. The witch didn't mind that vampires needed to feed to survive and had no problem with it, but she also thought that vampires made things much more dramatic and ridiculous when it came to their food, and a perfect example of what she meant was right in front of her. She really didn't get the appeal of it all.

"Who the hell are you three?" the man named Damon asked the women who ignored him as they all stared at Stefan, closing the front door behind him.

"He left us here," Rebekah complained to Stefan, annoyed that he was not paying much attention to her. "My brother actually left us here."

"Oh, I'm sorry." Stefan mocked Rebekah with a pout. "Your tone implies that I'm actually supposed to care."

Damon stared at the blonde woman with curiosity. "You're Klaus' sister?"

Rebekah glanced at Damon over her shoulder with a fake smile. "Rebekah. Pleasure, I'm sure." She pointed at the brunette witch. "Juniper Blake." She then gestured to the halfling. "Gwendolyn Moone, but you can call her Gwen." She turned back to Stefan. "Now that all introductions are over. Where are our rooms?"

Stefan gave out a chuckle. "You're not staying here." He then looked at Gwen and recalled something else Klaus had charged him with. "But Gwen can stay, since Klaus also tasked me to watch out for her." He glanced at Juniper. "He said you could drop dead at any moment."

"Ass," Juniper told Stefan, scowling at him with her arms folded over her chest. She then thought about it. "But Klaus is an even bigger asshole." She turned to look at Damon with a forced but polite smile decorating her face. "We will be staying here until we can find better accommodations."

"I don't think you can afford to stay here," Damon began his argument, but Juniper hushed him.

"I don't think you can afford to say otherwise," Juniper said with finality. "I can promise you to stay out of your way as long as you stay out of mine. Once we get everything sorted and I settle on how to kick Klaus' ass, we're out of your hair." She then looked at Gwen and Rebekah, jerking her head for them to follow her up the stairs to find rooms. "Let's go."

Damon looked at Stefan with a confused look, but his younger brother shrugged his shoulder in response. "So, I guess they're all staying here."

"Seems so," Stefan said offhandedly as he went back to play with his prey.

"Right," Damon sighed as he nodded before he walked away, leaving his brother to his game.

Upstairs, the three guests began to make themselves comfortable after having picked out their rooms and sleeping arrangements. While Rebekah had picked out a room for herself, Juniper opted to share one with Gwen that was across the hall from Rebekah's. Despite the Original's assurances that her enhanced senses would hear any danger that could threaten Gwen, the witch wanted to play it safe, at least until she would have to leave.

"Will you guys be fine on your own?" Rebekah asked Gwen and Juniper from where she rested on the bed in the room the witch and half-breed had claimed, watching them unpack a few of their things in the bathroom.

Gwen smiled at Rebekah from the foot of the bed where her suitcase rested on a bedroom bench. "We'll make do, so go have a happy first day of school."

"Try not to go crazy," Juniper said from the bathroom.

"All right," Rebekah breathed as she jumped off the king-sized bed before making her way out of the room. "Try not to die while I'm gone."

"Make everyone's life hell!" Juniper called, eliciting a small laugh from Gwen as she looked inside her suitcase for anything she might need to put in the bathroom, since she wasn't sure she should unpack everything.

"You're mean," Gwen told Juniper as the latter exited the bathroom.

"And yet you still love me," Juniper said as she went to the doorway, looking at Gwen over her shoulder. "I'm gonna go look where the laundry room and kitchen are. Need anything?"

"Do you think vampires drink tea?" Gwen asked, knowing that the house's fridge could be bare of any food.

Juniper pursed her lips. "A grocery run would do us good," she sighed. "I'll see what I can find."

Gwen nodded and watched as Juniper left the room. The young hybrid reached for her purse to look for her phone and see if Klaus left her any messages, but she found none. Just as she was about to text him, she was startled by knocking that pulled her attention to the doorway to find who she recognized as Stefan's older brother. "Um, hello?" she greeted awkwardly, the hair on the back of her neck bristling. "You're Damon, right? Stefan's brother?"

Damon smiled as he leaned against the doorway. "Well, you know something about me, but I know nothing about you. Don't you think we should make it even?"

"I've been told not to talk to strangers," Gwen countered, now facing him with her arms at her sides, already feeling the familiar sensation of her magic coursing into her hands.

"But you do know me," Damon said as he pushed himself off the doorway to take a few steps toward her, but he stopped when he noticed her body tensed up. He couldn't help but breathe the air, slightly frowning when a unique scent reached his nostrils. "I'll reintroduce myself…Damon Salvatore," he said as he extended his hand for Gwen to shake. "Resident of the home you and your friends invaded."

"In love with your brother's girl?" Gwen added as she looked at his extended hand before her eyes returned to lock on his.

"See?" The vampire grinned as he dropped his hands when he saw that she made no move to take his. "I'm not a stranger."

"But you want Nik dead, so that's reason enough for me not to like you," Gwen argued, her eyes zeroed in on Damon's, unwavering. If it were any other circumstance, she wouldn't be looking at a vampire dead in the eyes, but he was someone who wanted Klaus dead, and that didn't sit well with her. If she had an ounce of Klaus' bloodlust, she would kill the vampire in front of her without batting an eye, but she wouldn't. She never had the strength to take someone's life, not even when her life depended on it, which was something she hated about herself.

"Well, I have more than enough reason for that, which can be explained," he told her. "Still, I am most curious about you, shorty. What's your story?"

"Go fish," said Gwen, glaring at Damon. Although she was putting up the best tough front she could muster, she knew that her fast-beating heart gave her away. She especially got even more nervous the closer Damon got to her, and it took everything in her to keep her breathing in check and not let memories of the past overwhelm her.

Damon grinned in amusement, impressed by the girl's attitude. "I like your spunk." He lifted a hand and reached for her neck while taking a step closer to her, but a voice stopped him.

"Then you're gonna to love me," Juniper's voice drifted into the room, turning Gwen's and Damon's gazes to the entryway, where the witch was watching the scene before her with narrowed eyes. "I've got plenty spunk." She stepped inside the room and approached Damon. "It's what helps me turn vampires into ash in a matter of seconds." Her impassive eyes settled on Damon's. "I don't recall ordering room service."

Damon watched as Juniper's blue eyes flashed a milky white, but it was the air she carried herself with that had him backing out of the room, telling him that she wasn't someone he should be picking a fight with at the moment. "My apologies for interrupting your morning routine, ladies," he told them with his hands raised in surrender before he clasped them together in front of him as a bright smile grew on his lips. "If there is anything that I help you with, don't hesitate to call. Here at the Salvatore Brothers' bed and breakfast, we aspire to provide the best comfort for our guests." He then walked out of the room.

"Stay away from that one," Juniper told Gwen, who nodded. "He's weird."

As Damon walked down the hallway, he couldn't help but frown as he glanced back at the room he just left. When he had gotten closer to Gwen, his picked up on a peculiar scent. To him, it was a kind of sweet but spicy scent, which was appealing to him. It made him wonder what her blood would taste like, and he had been dangerously close to lose control when he had reached to touch the girl's neck. He knew that if he had touched her skin, he would have felt _something_, and he knew exactly what that feeling was. He hadn't encountered it for quite a long time, and he was in Mystic Falls when he last did, which left him wondering how Klaus got someone like Gwen on his side.

.

Crowds of students and people invited to the bonfire that had been planned for the first night of the school year covered the parking lot of Mystic Falls High School, but they all slowly moved to a forested area near the building where the party was actually being held with torches and bonfires providing warm light. There was music blaring and drinks being passed around with kegs scattered around the forest floor. And while everyone was having a good time as they all got better acquainted and caught up, a group of people took the time to gather inside the classroom of the history teacher due to the school being empty of any eavesdroppers.

"I'll lure Stefan away from the bonfire," Elena began to discuss the plan with her friends and guardian as she stood to the desk's side. "Then when he's distracted…" she trailed off as she glanced at Alaric from where he stood behind his desk where some of his weapons against the supernatural were on display.

"I'll shoot him," Alaric finished for Elena.

Damon hummed from where he sat on top of furniture that stored and displayed books. "Can't Bonnie just ju-ju him or something?" he asked as he swung a leg back and forth.

"I'm trying to keep Bonnie out of this," Elena said, sighing. "I don't trust that Stefan won't hurt her." She looked up at Caroline, who stood in front of the desk. "Caroline, are you covered?"

"Yes!" The blonde vampire nodded. "I will make sure that the old Forbes jail cell is prepped and ready."

"We're forgetting key players here," Damon reminded the group, gaining their attention. "There's Juniper, the Wicked Witch of the East. I don't think she's someone who boasts about being strong and has nothing to show for it." This was something he took notice of when he met Juniper earlier in the day, recognizing that she was someone with power. "And she's already threatened me, but she did say that she wouldn't do anything so long as I stay out of her way."

Elena nodded at this. "Then we stay out of her way. There's no reason for us to engage her, so we steer clear of her."

"Okay." Damon nodded, finding it to be too simple but opting not to say anything. "What about Gwen, the magical faerie?"

Alaric frowned. "Faerie?"

"Yup, she's a faerie," said Damon, leaning back against the wall.

"Wait, like Tinkerbell?" asked Caroline, never having thought that she would hear anything about faeries.

"No, Cinderella." Damon rolled his eyes. "I'm talking about the real thing. Real faeries are quite a mystery, but a delicious delicacy. Their magic can trump a witch's."

"So, she's strong?" asked Elena.

Damon squinted his eyes and pursed his lips. "I don't think so. Her scent isn't that strong, which would make her a half-breed."

"How do you know so much?" asked Caroline, intrigued

"Look, you haven't been around as long as I have, but faeries were still extremely popular a few years back before they went extinct. There was one right here in Mystic Falls in 1912," he began to explain as he recalled that time. He could still remember how the warm liquid of the faerie he drank from poured down his throat, how it made him feel more alive than when he was human. "A pure faerie has a more intoxicating scent. A vampire can't ignore it, not until we get a taste. And when a vampire gets a taste of faerie blood, it's a miracle if they stop." He could feel his mouth begin to water at the memory. "I can't even describe...the feeling of _pure ecstasy_." There was silence in the room, and everyone knew that he had killed the faerie.

"What was a faerie doing here in Mystic Falls in 1912?" Elena asked Damon.

"What any faerie does," said Damon, shrugging. "Hiding."

"From whom?" asked Caroline.

Damon stood up. "Everyone." His answer had everyone staring at him with confusion, so he elaborated. "Faeries have been hunted down by just about everyone for their mystical power or something, mostly by vampires and witches." He crossed his arms over his chest. "Vampires became so addicted to them that they either killed them from the first feeding or enslaved them to have them last longer."

"That's horrible," Elena said as her face frowned in disgust, much like Caroline's and Alaric's.

"Yeah, but witches were crueler," Damon said as he took a deep breath. "From what I heard…witches killed them to eat their hearts and acquire power." This only caused his companions to groan, horrified by what he was saying. "They also used them for rituals, which always ended up being fatal for the faerie." He debated on whether he should say the other thing he had heard about faeries, but he decided to do so. "Covens of witches also tried to make their lineage more powerful by," he cleared his throat as he made an odd gesture with his hand, "getting a faerie to make a baby with one of their own."

"Oh, that's just messed up!" Caroline almost yelled.

"It's why they're extinct," said Damon.

"Didn't they have magic?" Elena asked, still processing how someone could live their life in constant fear, and with good reason.

"They did, but faeries have weaknesses like everyone else," Damon told her. "Iron is one of them, and very deadly."

Alaric asked Damon without looking at him, "Are they immortal?"

Damon hummed. "A pureblood is, but they're not indestructible. A half-breed has the lifespan of a human."

Caroline frowned when she realized something. "And you met the faerie that was here back in 1912?"

"Well, before I made her my dinner, we spent some time together and got to talking," Damon told her, preferring not to go back to what he saw as the turning point of his immortal life.

"Wait, you killed her?" Caroline asked with a frown.

"Like I said," Damon began with a huff. "It's impossible for a vampire to stop themselves from drinking their blood and you can't stop once you start, no matter how much control you think you have," he said, a bit annoyed at how he was being stared at by Caroline and Alaric.

Elena cleared her throat to stop the tensions from rising. "Let's just focus on the here and now." She glanced at Damon. "So, do we have to worry about this faerie? Any abilities?"

Damon hummed with his lips pursed in thoughts. "Their powers are tied to the elements and such, which might be a problem." He didn't like not being sure of what they were going up against, but there wasn't much of a choice if he wanted to help his brother. "This one is only half a faerie, so she might not be as strong, but we shouldn't test the waters."

"Okay, so we steer clear of her," said Elena.

"I think that's best," said Damon, nodding. "Now, what about Rebekah? She's the real problem."

"Which is why it's your job to keep her away," Elena told Damon.

"How?!" Damon raised an eyebrow. "She's an Original and worse than the other two. And last time I checked, we're out of daggers."

Elena shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly, not really thinking about her next words. "So then occupy her with your charm."

Alaric snorted. "Might have better luck finding the dagger."

Damon tilted his head as he gave his former friend an unimpressed look. "Are you ever _not_ going to be mad at me, Ric?"

"Doubtful," was Alaric's reply, causing Caroline to chuckle.

Just then, Tyler entered the classroom, catching everyone's attention. "Sorry I'm late," he said to his friends. "What's going on?"

"We need you to raid your mom's vervain supply," Elena told Tyler. "Enough to keep Stefan down for a while."

Tyler frowned, his body becoming alarmed at what was being asked of him. "You can't do that to Stefan."

Caroline stepped closer to her boyfriend, returning his frown. "Why not?"

"Trust me, Tyler," Elena began, "it's in his best interest."

"Yeah," Caroline agreed.

"It's not in Klaus'," Tyler said, believing that he shouldn't let anything interfere with his sire's plans.

"But Klaus is the bad guy, Tyler," Caroline scoffed, not noticing how Damon perked up. "You know, why are you acting like some freaky, hybrid, slave minion."

"Uh-oh," Damon spoke up as he slowly made his way toward Tyler, his eyes watching the hybrid's body language.

Alaric glanced at Damon with a bit of annoyance. "What?"

"Klaus made me who I am, Caroline," Tyler argued with his girlfriend. "I owe him everything."

"Oh, boy," Damon sighed, now realizing what was wrong with Tyler.

Caroline threw Damon a glare over her shoulder. "Okay, can we cool it on the commentary, please."

Elena looked at Damon, her eyes narrowing when they saw Damon take a vervain dart off Alaric's desk. "What is going on?" she asked the older Salvatore.

"I'm just going to go," Tyler said before turning on his heel to leave the room, but he didn't get to take a single step forward due to Damon appearing behind his back and injecting vervain into his system, causing the hybrid to collapse on the floor unconscious and everyone to gasp in shock.

"What are you doing?!" Caroline shrieked at Damon as she went to kneel beside Tyler's prone form, checking if he was all right.

"He's been sired," Damon answered as he threw the dart on the desk.

"What?" asked Alaric.

"Sired," Damon repeated as he looked down at Tyler. "He feels loyal to Klaus because Klaus' blood created him."

"Loyal how?" asked Elena, worried for her friend.

"He'll seek acceptance from his master," Damon explained before he frowned. "It's really rare among vampires. It almost never happens." He hummed as he shrugged. "But maybe not so much in hybrids."

"So how do I fix him?" Caroline asked the older vampire as she looked up at him.

Damon gave Caroline a fake smile. "Get a new boyfriend."

Caroline sighed as her shoulders slumped in defeat, having hoped that she could have enjoyed a good bonfire party with her friends without the supernatural drama that always seems to follow in their wake.

.

"Honestly, it's the first day of school," Juniper huffed as she looked at herself in the vanity mirror of the room she was occupying with Gwen. While she applied a bit of makeup, she also looked at Rebekah's reflection as the Original sat on the edge of the bed as she checked for any imperfections through her powder's mirror. "There's school tomorrow." The witch pursed her red lips. "Although, I guess that it's okay to go out drinking on a school night nowadays."

Rebekah closed her powder and looked up at Juniper. "Why must you be such a downer? Didn't you go out to parties when you went to school?"

"Yes, but I went to college parties to piss off my foster parents during my rebellious phase," Juniper said as she turned away from the mirror after being satisfied with her work. She had styled her long, brown hair in soft curls that cascaded down her back and was parted in the middle with her long bangs framing her oval-shaped face. "I admit, I was quite a brat and quite a handful, but I always liked a good party."

"I've never gone to school before and anything related to it, so I would very much like to see what all the fuss is about," Rebekah said, remembering how the students were more excited to go to a bonfire party than learn. In the past, people fought for education, but now they fought to leave the school as soon as possible.

"You've never been a teenager is what you mean, which is a blessing in the modern age," Juniper stated as she stared at Rebekah's downcast form. "Tonight, you can expect drunk and stupid kids, but homecoming might be more your speed. There's also the many more dances and stuff they come up with during the school year." She smiled at Rebekah when the vampire looked up at her. "And let's not forget prom, which is _the_ most important event for any high school student."

The blonde vampire smiled as she stood up with her hands on her hips, feeling more upbeat. "Then, I will have to make it a wonderful year for myself."

"You're gonna do more than wonderful," Juniper told the grinning Original before she glanced at the closed bathroom door. "Gwen, are you ready?"

"Almost," was Gwen's muffled reply from within the bathroom.

Juniper went to the bed and sat down to put on a pair of black sneakers that she matched with a black top that had cami straps, lace trim and a relaxed fit. She decided to wear a pair of distressed denim shorts that had floral lace inserts. She stood and walked over to the closet where she had hung up a few of her clothes, picking out an olive-colored cargo jacket that she put on, rolling up its long sleeves up to her forearms. And she only added a few beaded bracelets as accessories.

Gwen stepped out of the bathroom after finishing applying some light makeup. "I'm done," she announced, having gone with a cropped tee in light peach that had a crew neck with cuffed, short dolman sleeves and displayed a boxy fit. She had paired her top with high-waisted, dark denim skinny jeans and white sneakers. The only accessories she wore were the ones always on her; her rose gold necklace with the pearl hanging from it and her bracelet with the wolf charm on it. "So, we ready to go?" she asked Rebekah with a wide smile.

"Very much," Rebekah said with a bright smile, looking just as excited as Gwen.

"Okay, before we get off track, I want you guys to remember that some people don't like us very much in this town, and most of them happen to go to this school," Juniper began to say to the two girls who were now sitting on the edge of the bed staring up at her. "We should be on alert. Keep our eyes open." She pointed a finger at Gwen. "You are not allowed to drink more than one bottle of anything that has alcohol in it," she said, receiving a mock salute from the young girl. The witch then directed her finger at Rebekah. "You can drink from anyone but try not to leave any dead bodies lying around. It's the 21st century, so murders aren't as easy to cover up." She paused. "Although, this town doesn't seem like it cares about doing a decent investigation, which means someone in an influential position covers it all up."

"Yes, mother," Gwen and Rebekah replied simultaneously before dissolving into giggles.

Juniper rolled her eyes at them as she smiled. "Mother knows best, so mind what I say." She groaned. "I also feel naked without my grimoire."

"We'll be fine, so stop stressing and start relaxing. That's the point of this night," Rebekah said as she stood up to wrap an arm around the witch. "We have you with your smarts and magic. There's me, the Original bombshell no one can hold a candle to." She looked at Gwen. "And we have faerie magic on our side, which is our trump card. Plus, she's cute and you're dazzling."

"What does that last part have to do with anything?" Juniper asked the vampire, her brows furrowed.

"It'll win points among my peers by bringing attractive friends," Rebekah answered. "I don't really get how that works, but some students were talking about it."

"People do that to make themselves look good," Juniper explained to Rebekah.

Rebekah nodded, liking the idea even more. "That's perfect."

The witch cleared her throat. "You're not understanding. This wouldn't work for a person like you."

"Why not?" asked a frowning Rebekah.

"Um," Gwen began. "She means that people who are not considered pretty by the majority do that, but you're already quite beautiful, so you'll just be getting unnecessary extra points."

Rebekah gave Gwen a soft look. "Well, aren't you sweet?" She then shrugged. "Oh, well. We'll just be a group of attractive people making ourselves look even better."

"Still, we need to be careful," Juniper reminded Rebekah as the latter took her arm from around the witch's shoulders. "Remember that there's a group of supernatural individuals who we all messed with on the first day we arrived, so we're probably on a hit list."

"I don't know what their big deal is," Rebekah scoffed, annoyed that they had to be careful of a couple of moody teenagers. "We didn't kill anyone."

"Klaus did indirectly kill two students by compelling Stefan," Juniper recalled.

"He also did kill that Tyler fellow," Gwen added.

"Well, yes, but he did the werewolf a huge favor," countered Rebekah. "Now the little pup will no longer be a slave to his curse and turn into a beast every full moon."

"I am pretty sure they won't see it that way," said Juniper, her hands on her hips. "There's also the fact that they might not like that Klaus will be using that doppelgänger's blood to create his hybrids. I honestly think it would be beneficial for them to just give him some of her blood every now and then to get him out of their hair." She sighed, "You know, and avoid the unnecessary drama."

Rebekah snorted. "I doubt they will. Humans have a tendency to retaliate against anything that threatens their lives or reality." Gwen and Juniper looked at the vampire with curious eyes. "What I mean is that they'd rather fight my brother and die than come to a compromise, be it because of pride or some misguided emotion."

"I get that this Elena might be a good friend or girlfriend and has family, but…" Juniper trailed off as she tried to look for the correct words on how to phrase her thoughts. "Why are so many people hellbent on keeping her safe from the tiniest thing?" It wasn't that she disliked the girl, since Juniper didn't know her, but she failed to comprehend why she just couldn't make a deal with Klaus.

"That girl is a descendant of a line of women who capture the hearts of men to do their bidding, and it always tends to be brothers," Rebekah said with a scoff. "Everyone ends up groveling at their feet for some reason I fail to understand. It's like she draws others to her side, and people are somehow willing to drop on a sword for them."

Juniper hummed as she nodded. "You don't seem too fond of this girl or her ancestry," she stated what she knew was obvious.

"Nope," said Rebekah. "Her ancestor pitted two of my brothers against each other, and they're the spitting image of one another. The same goes for that Katerina."

Gwen raised her eyebrows. "And do they look _exactly_ alike?"

Rebekah clicked her tongue as she looked up, appearing to be in thought. "Well, yes, but there were _very_ small things that set them apart. They were mostly personal preferences, like how they styled their hair, maybe a beauty mark or something, but I don't really remember any distinct difference."

"Whatever," Juniper said, drawing the attention of the other girls. "Let's just forget everything else for tonight and enjoy the bonfire. We have no obligations or responsibilities, so let's go and have a good night."

"Finally." Rebekah grinned at the witch. "Mother hen is finally gone."

"No, she's not," Juniper argued. "I'm just raising morale. I can tell you guys from experience that you go to parties with high spirits." She grinned. "You know, make a good first impression."

"Oh, I can already tell that this is going to be a good night," said Rebekah.

Juniper chuckled nervously. "We have yet to arrive to this party, so let's not jinx it."

"What do we do if someone does something?" Gwen asked as she stood from the bed, grabbing her denim jacket to put her arms through the gray sleeves. She took her hair from beneath the jacket and let the wavy tresses of dark brown hair lightened by blonde highlights flow down her back. She adjusted her bangs that reached her chin away from her eyes, which were slightly parted on the right and swept to the left to frame her heart-shaped face.

Juniper shared a look with Rebekah and shrugged her shoulders before she said, "We kill them."

* * *

**End of the chapter!**

**I hope you guys loved or liked or enjoyed the chapter! Now, I am ecstatic with the amount of Faves and Follows, and I also hope you guys leave a review with any and all thoughts you guys may have, so don't hold back!**

**See you all in the next chapter!**


	9. bonfire tales

**Hello, readers! I am so psyched for having gone past the 6,000 views of this story and I couldn't more more honored that so many have tuned in for a read. I also hope that you are all staying safe!**

**Now, on to the response of your awesome reviews:**

**-_xenocanaan_: I'm so glad you're loving it! And yes, I wanted Damon to know a bit, 'cause the series never really showed neither Damon or Stefan being aware of other supernatural beings, even though they were pretty old vampires who got around. Also, Mystic Falls has a bit of everything in its history, so I added a bit to it. Of course, the Mystic Falls gang never learns NOT to be smart and play their cards right, I'll leave it at that.**

**-_PrincessMagic_: Yass, there's gonna be a lot of bonding for the girls in these chapters that are to come, so I hope you enjoy them as much as I am. The switching teams for the Scooby Gang is still a work in progress, since I have entertained the idea.**

**-_GhostGypsy_: Yes, Gwen will have her moments and even more as the story progresses and she breaks out of her shell. I am so happy that you're liking this revamp, since I've been worried about it a bit, but I just love working on this again and spacing things out. The whole situation with Gwen having problems with her magic is a little secret for the future, which I can't wait for you guys to read, but I won't spoil anything about it.**

**-_Love . Fiction . 2020_: Thanks, I'm so glad you liked it!**

**-_GreenLilly_: So happy you loved it, and I hope you'll love this one. I love writing the girls together and fleshing them out. And yes, I gotta give tidbits about the faeries and such, but I am taking my time with that, since I don't want to make a blank exposition about it and want to show what other characters have to say about them, which is why I felt the need to connect someone of the Scooby Gang to the faeries in some way, which I will delve into later on. And I love and hate writing Damon, only because I want to do him justice and stay true to his character. And yes, June can be a Mama Bear, especially when she has no one else she cares about to protect.**

**-_treesofsilverleaves_: Yes, I want to show you guys more about their relationship, which is extremely complicated, but there are reasons for it. I am not making their relationship like this without an explanation, since it's not so simple. And I have to admit that Klaus and Juniper are awesome to write. I am so excited for the ships you guys might want, so no fear in sharing!**

**-_amg . supernatural_: Thanks! Glad you enjoyed and will continue to do so!**

**Disclaimer: ****I own nothing from The Vampire Diaries and claim no ownership over anything pertaining to it. I only own my characters.**

* * *

_bonfire tales_

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While Juniper wore an expressionless stare as she gazed at the large crowd of teenagers having a good time at the Bonfire Party, Gwen and Rebekah were amused with everything that was happening around them as they looked around with mild curiosity. They walked around before they arrived at one of many tables with items that were made available for consumption, mostly finding kegs and coolers filled with beer and some water. They did come across a few snacks, and one of them caught Gwen's attention, which had her mouth begin to water in anticipation.

"They have smores!" the halfling announced with a smile as she reached for the bag of marshmallows, glancing at the chocolate bars and graham crackers that she also grabbed.

"What's that?" asked Rebekah, raising an eyebrow when the other two girls looked at her with incredulity. She realized that what she asked must have been a dumb question, but only to those of the modern century. "Do remember that I've been stuffed in a box for ninety years. I have a free pass for stupid questions."

"It wasn't stupid," Gwen told her, adjusting the snacks she grabbed in her arms as she also grabbed some sticks that had been laid out on the table. "We just forget and have a hard time processing that Nik actually stuffed you in a box in the first place."

Juniper made a humming noise as she looked around them. "Yeah, we're going to need drinks if we want to have a good time."

Rebekah grinned at the witch. "Now we're talking." She turned to look at Gwen. "You go find us a bonfire, while June and I get some drinks."

Gwen made a mock salute. "_Oui, capitaine_."

The group of three girls separated there so that Rebekah and Juniper could look for some drinks, whereas Gwen went about looking for a relatively isolated bonfire for herself and her friends. She smiled at people and apologized to anyone she bumped into, also being careful not to trip on anything on the forest floor. Finally, she found a bonfire that had an empty wodden bench that could fit her and her companions easily, so she sat on the hard wood with the ingredients needed to make smores. All she had to do now was wait for Juniper and Rebekah to find her.

Next to a keg, Juniper chuckled as she watched how Rebekah struggled with trying to get some beer out of the barrel and into her red cup. "Are you sure you don't need my help?" the grinning witch asked the frustrated vampire.

Rebekah huffed as she gave Juniper a halfhearted glare before giving up, having wanted to do things by herself. "Fine, you do it."

Juniper smiled at the blonde vampire before she filled their three cups with some beer, explaining to Rebekah how to manage a keg as she did so. "You got it?" she asked as she handed the blonde her drink.

Before Rebekah could answer, Stefan joined them, appearing out of nowhere. "You two all right there?" he asked the two women as he poured some beer into his own red cup. "Gwen doing all right?"

"She's fine," said Juniper, guessing that he was only asking due to Klaus' compulsion.

"I thought Tyler would be here," Rebekah remarked, hoping that her interest in the new hybrid would irk Stefan in some way. She was bothered that he didn't want to rekindle their relationship or even want to spend time with her after severing his connection with his emotions, but she wasn't going to let that keep her from having fun.

"You're into Tyler now?" Stefan asked Rebekah, but his tone showed he was disinterested in whatever she said. "That's kind of fickle," he mocked the Original, not at all fearful of teasing her.

"When you're willing to give me the time of day again, then we'll talk," Rebekah scoffed at Stefan, taking a sip of her beer. "Until then, a girl has needs."

Juniper raised her cup. "Amen to that." She touched Rebekah's cup with her own before they both took a gulp of beer. The witch directed a smirk at Stefan. "Now, you can go on your merry way and bother someone else."

Elena arrived at the keg, surprising only Stefan by her silent approach as she poured some beer for herself. "Excuse me." She only acknowledged Rebekah and Juniper with a tight smile, ignoring Stefan's existence completely.

"Elena, hi," Stefan greeted his ex-girlfriend as he tried to catch her eyes, but she openly avoided looking at him. He watched as she took a rather large sip of her beer, the smile on his lips being an awkward one. "What are you doing?"

"I'm having fun, Stefan," Elena countered with a bit of an edge to her voice, raising her eyebrows at him. "You have a problem with that?" She then proceeded to drink the whole cup, sighing in relief when she was done.

"All right, take it easy." Stefan told her, itching to reach over and take the red cup from her hands. Even though he had turned off his humanity, he could still hear a voice nagging in the dark recesses of his mind to get Elena to stop drinking too much too fast, and it had nothing to do with Klaus' compulsion. "We both know you are kind of a lightweight," he said, trying to deter her from getting drunk.

"Uh-huh. Really?" Elena chuckled mockingly as she frowned at Stefan, a little peeved by his comment as she poured some more beer into her cup. "You think I'm going to let a blood addict tell me how to drink?" She then took her leave, purposely ramming her shoulder against Stefan's when she walked past him.

"Wow," Juniper chuckled as she took another sip of beer. "Not a good break-up?" she taunted Stefan, eliciting snickers from Rebekah as they watched the young vampire walk away to follow Elena. "Does the whole humanity switch actually work?" she asked the blonde vampire standing next to her.

Rebekah shrugged her shoulders as she looked at her beer. "Honestly, after so many years witnessing and feeling so many things, that switch stops working, as if it's been used up. We just end up having a better handle of our emotions…to an extent." She frowned as she glanced at Juniper with pursed lips. "I don't know if you understood, but…"

Juniper nodded, giving Rebekah a sympathetic smile. "I understand."

"Well," Rebekah began, taking a deep breath as she filled up her cup once more and another to take to Gwen, "let's go find our little lamb and enjoy some smores. I'm dying to try one."

Juniper was just about to follow Rebekah when a cold and unpleasant feeling went down her back, causing her to look around as she tried to find whatever it was that caused goosebumps to manifest on her skin. There was something wrong going on, something she couldn't ignore due to the powerful magic she sensed was being used. "You go on ahead," she told Rebekah. "I'll go find us some other snacks." Rebekah wasn't convinced by this, but she nodded and left to find Gwen. "Don't wait for me!" she called after the Original, seeing the latter raise a cup to tell her that she heard.

Not too far away, Rebekah found Gwen sitting on a bench and arrived just as a boy was about to approach Gwen. "Move," she told the brown-haired teenager who had yet to greet Gwen. She locked eyes with the teen boy and said, "_And bother someone else_. Can't you see it's only going to be us girls tonight?" She grinned as she watched the boy leave and join a crowd with a dazed look. "Now, let's get back to these smores and see what all the fuss is about," she said as she sat down to Gwen's left, handing the young girl one of the red cups she was carrying.

Gwen took a sip of beer, the taste making her grimace and her body release an involuntary shiver. "Oh, that's not good. It's not good at all," she mumbled, more to herself. Her reaction had Rebekah laughing a bit. "It's not funny. That was disgusting." She tried to take another sip, but she still couldn't find anything she liked about the sour taste. "How can people drink this?"

"Years of practice," said Rebekah.

"You mean, like…a thousand years?" chuckled Gwen, placing the cup on the ground next to her feet.

"More or less," said Rebekah, chuckling. "Still, I think you're more of a wine girl, or maybe fruity drinks."

"Probably," Gwen chuckled before she looked around when she didn't see Juniper, so she asked Rebekah, "Where's June?"

"She said she wanted to find more snacks, but I think it's a witch thing," Rebekah answered and noticed the halfling look around in search of her friend with concern in her eyes. "She'll be fine," she assured the young hybrid as she patted Gwen's knee in comfort. "Let's enjoy a few of these and wait for her to come back." Gwen nodded, but Rebekah could still see the halfling had yet to relax. "We're not doing anything until you smile," she said as she stared straight into Gwen's hazel eyes, straightening her back as she waited. "I have all the time in the world."

Unable to fight it, a smile grew on Gwen's lips. "Fine." She reached for their snacks and sticks, placing them between herself and Rebekah. "Here," she said as she handed Rebekah a stick and kept one for herself. "So, a smore is a snack that is normally eaten over a bonfire." She placed her stick on her lap and opened the bag of marshmallows, graham crackers and chocolate bars, while Rebekah watched with rapt attention. "We start with the marshmallow." The half-breed impaled a marshmallow with her stick before placing it over the bonfire in front of them, allowing the flames to lick at the white confection as she reached for two graham crackers and a chocolate bar. "Then, we make ourselves a very tasty sandwich." While keeping the stick steady as she brought the lightly burnt marshmallow closer to her, she positioned the chocolate bar on top of the warm marshmallow before she managed to grab the combination of the marshmallow and chocolate between two graham crackers. "And here we are." She showed the warm, sweet treat to Rebekah with a smile. "A smore," she said as she gave the snack to a fascinated Rebekah.

"It's so simple," Rebekah whispered before taking a bite from the sugary treat, releasing a pleasant moan when her mouth was filled with nothing but blissful sweetness. "And so good." She stared at the smore in her hand with wonder. "How on earth did I live a thousand years without ever having any idea this existed?"

Gwen laughed. "You get a pass." She waited until Rebekah finished the smore before gesturing to the stick on the Original's lap. "Your turn."

And so, Rebekah set about trying to make a smore on her own with Gwen's directions. They shared a few laughs and giggles at the vampire's failed attempts when placing the marshmallow over the fire, leaving it too long or not enough. She had almost gone through the entire bag of marshmallows without any luck, given that she ended up burning them and picking up another one to try again. Rebekah's stubbornness prevented her from giving up making the perfect smore, determined to at least make one of the delicious snack before the night was over.

"I can just make them for you. It's no big deal," Gwen laughed as she watched Rebekah failed yet again with a huff. The half-faerie munched on her own smore, her sixth one.

"Says the pro." Rebekah groaned when she watched her marshmallow melt through the stick and fall into the flames with a hiss. "Why is this so bloody hard?"

"It won't be after you get the hang of it," Gwen comforted her.

Rebekah looked up at all the people around them with a small smile. So far, she was having a good time as an exchange student and enjoying what she learned in every class, even though she had only been a student for a mere day. This was an experience she always wanted to go through, if only to feel what it meant to be normal for a small moment in her life. Klaus' paranoia and fear of their father kept her from fulfilling such simple desires that had always fascinated her. "You know, I've heard people complain all day about going back to school and waking up early and having to study, but none of them know how lucky they are," Rebekah said without looking at Gwen, still gazing at the teenagers having a good time. "They really have no idea."

"Yeah." Gwen nodded as she placed down her stick, deciding that it was best to stop eating smores before her stomach got queasy. She followed Rebekah's line of sight, observing her surroundings. "None of them have any idea about the creatures of the night lurking among them."

"I don't think that would be so bad," Rebekah remarked, picking up another marshmallow to stab through it with her stick.

"No, probably not," Gwen hummed in agreement.

"So, speaking of normal things," Rebekah began as she turned to Gwen. "Let's talk about boys. You start."

Gwen furrowed her brows playfully. "Why do I have to go first?"

"I'm older than you," Rebekah said with a shrug of her shoulders.

"You're older than anyone in this town, so I don't think that's fair," Gwen argued.

"I suggested the idea, so you have to do the polite thing by going first," said Rebekah. "Besides, my list of suitors is too long to be able to cover it in one night."

"Fine," Gwen sighed, her sullen eyes staring at the fire, a familiar face appearing in the forefront of her mind. "There _was_ a boy, but only one."

Rebekah chuckled. "Do tell."

Gwen smiled, but it didn't quite reach her eyes. "It was during the time when we were staying in New York around three years ago, I think," she said, trying to recall the exact date. "I was thirteen and alone."

"Oh, puppy love," Rebekah cooed.

"Yeah," Gwen said, nodding in agreement. "I was going to a bookstore and bumped into a group of students who were coming out of school." She smiled as she remembered the nervous apology that she received from one of the boys, how handsome he looked in the uniform of his private school. "There was this boy who wanted to buy me some cake or something to say he was sorry."

"Cake?" asked Rebekah.

"We were thirteen," countered Gwen, still smiling. "He was very sweet, but I knew that it was pointless to say 'yes', so I left." She chuckled as she recalled what happened next. "He was waiting by the bookstore a week later with a cake in hand."

"Oh, now that's very sweet," said Rebekah, finding the story to be quite adorable. "Quite charming, too."

"He was, and very clumsy," said Gwen, giggling.

"What was his name?" Rebekah asked her.

"Adam," Gwen told her, exhaling her bottled up emotions to keep her voice from cracking just by saying his name. "He was insistent on being friends and kept trying to meet up with me, but I didn't want him to go anywhere near where Nik and I were staying, so I made him a deal to give him my number if he left." She cleared her throat, fighting to stay strong. "We called each other quite a lot and just talked." She smiled when she could still hear Adam's voice ringing through her mind. "I liked him so much. He was my first friend." The halfling could feel her cheeks begin to heat up as the familiar emotion she felt back then settled on her chest once more.

"You had a crush on him," Rebekah stated, laughing when she saw Gwen hide her face behind her hands. "Oh, and you still blush just thinking about him," the vampire teased.

"He told me he liked me," Gwen said, her voice muffled from behind her hands that still covered her face.

"What happened next?" Rebekah asked after Gwen pulled her hands away from her face. "Did this Romeo come to Juliet's balcony and waltzed her away to a dance?"

"He tried to invite me to get-togethers with his friends, but I couldn't, not with Nik there," she explained as she shook her head, remembering how frustrated she had felt when she couldn't meet up with Adam to do anything. "I was trying to get Nik to let me go out more, but he wasn't budging."

Rebekah furrowed her brows. "It was a harmless crush."

"Yeah, tell that to Nik," Gwen sighed.

"What did you do?" asked Rebekah.

"Well, an opportunity presented itself when Nik had to leave for a while, so I planned to go to one of the parties Adam invited me to." Gwen's gaze became downcast as she stared at her fidgeting fingers on her lap, feeling the familiar pressure of tears behind her eyes. "I met up with him at one of his friend's penthouse for a get-together and had a good time playing games and watching movies, but I didn't want to risk it. I needed to get home by midnight."

"Like Cinderella, the magic wore off," remarked Rebekah, her gaze becoming downcast as she thought about the countless times that she had to give up on her own happiness for fear of what Nik might to do her.

Gwen chuckled at this, finding the reference to be quite funny. "Yeah, something like that. I was thinking about sneaking off and calling Adam the next morning, but he found me and convinced me to let him walk me home," she said as she focused on the fire in front of her. "We kissed at the door before he left." Her heart ached as she recalled her first kiss and the feelings that awakened inside of her when their lips had met, but she tried to steel herself to continue the story.

"The night ended on a good note, so why the long face?" Rebekah asked Gwen, but she already knew that nothing stayed good when her brother was against it.

"When is anything good and simple when it comes to Nik?" Gwen asked Rebekah with a raised eyebrow, causing the Original to frown. "He came home the next day looking more than a little happy. A bit smug, but I didn't pay too much attention to it." Her eyes watered as she shrugged her shoulders, her lips in a thin line. "Adam called me and asked to meet up at the bookstore, so I did." She paused, taking a deep breath to undo the knot in her chest with an exhale. "He was a different person, telling me that it was all just a game to him."

"What?" Rebekah frowned, not having expected that. "Wasn't he charmed and such by you?"

Gwen looked at Rebekah with a tight smile. "Not so much after being compelled to be cruel to me, something that Nik had no trouble confessing to having a hand in when I asked him." She scoffed, remembering how angry she had been.

Rebekah wanted to be surprised, but she really wasn't, not when it came to her older brother and his ways of 'protecting' his loved ones from what he perceived as a threat. "You're lucky he didn't kill him. Nik has killed almost all my lovers…or did something horrific to them. And he always said he did it to protect me." She placed a comforting hand on Gwen's shoulder. "What did you do with Adam?"

"Well," Gwen released a humorless laugh, "I had a choice. I either never contacted Adam ever again…" she trailed off as she cleared her throat to push down the lump that was growing in her throat. "Or Nik would have him kill himself."

"Yes, Nik always has a thing for leaving it up to others to decide to live by his standards," said Rebekah, rubbing Gwen's back in an attempt to offer some comfort.

"Adam's safe, so it's fine," Gwen said as she exhaled. While she had been heartbroken when it happened, she found that she wasn't too bummed about the situation as the days went on and she returned to the norm of her life. She hated herself for always falling back into the mold that best suited Klaus, never being brave enough to break out of it. "It's my fault, really. I just never have the guts to stand my ground when it comes to him." And she knew that it wasn't because she was afraid of Klaus, realizing that she was simply afraid of getting what she wanted by exploring life without him.

"It's amazing you're still with him," said Rebekah.

Gwen smiled at Rebekah. "Yeah, but the same could be said about you. We can't seem to abandon him."

Rebekah huffed with a groan as she shook her head. "We're supposed to be having fun, but we ended up digging up old stuff that needs to stay buried."

"True, but we're bonding," Gwen said with a bit of a lull in her voice, receiving a smile from Rebekah. The young girl looked around, blowing some air at her the wisps of her hair to get it out of her eyes before just using her hands to swipe her tresses to the side. "I think I'm going to go find out what's taking June so long." She stood up and turned to Rebekah. "Will you be fine on your own?"

"Yes, I'll catch up with you guys in a mo," Rebekah sighed as she began to roast another marshmallow, glaring at the sweet treat, as if that was enough to will the delicious treat to do as she wanted. "I really just want to get _one_ right."

"Okay, I'll try to be quick," Gwen told the vampire before she set off to search for Juniper.

Rebekah watched Gwen leave before returning her attention to her marshmallow, her eyes narrowing in determination. She glanced up to her left when she saw Damon sitting down on the bench next to her, but she had sensed him approaching her just when Gwen took her leave. "What, no friends your own age?" she remarked after Damon made himself comfortable, but she remained focused on her task.

"Like _you_ can talk," Damon quipped in return.

Rebekah brought her burning marshmallow close to her mouth to blow away the flames, scowling at the now blackened treat. "Is this supposed to be fun?" she asked, not expecting to get an answer, since she was speaking to herself. "I've been through almost an entire bag of these."

"No, you're just looking at it all wrong. Look, this is a little rough on the outside," Damon told her as he reached up to Rebekah's marshmallow and pulled off the burnt outer layer to reveal the fluffy insides. "But the inside…" he trailed off with a hum as he moved the stick closer to Rebekah's mouth, allowing her to eat it with care that she wouldn't get singed. "Yum." He licked his sticky fingers that had touched the marshmallow's burnt layer he threw on the ground, maintaining eye contact with the older vampire.

The Original vampire hummed in delight, smiling at the younger vampire. "It's good," she told him, her eyes looking him over, concluding that he really was quite handsome. "Still not what I am aiming for."

Damon nodded, inching closer to the blonde without knowing about Elena's jealous gaze that watched him get cozy with another woman. He reached for another marshmallow, along with some graham crackers and a chocolate bar to make Rebekah a smore. "Have you never had one of these before?" he asked Rebekah as he handed her a finished smore, giving her a playful glare.

Rebekah paused for a moment before she took the smore. "Well, I've been in a casket for ninety years."

Damon hummed with a playful scowl. "That's no excuse."

Rebekah paused from taking another bite of her smore, glancing at Damon to find him giving her a sultry grin, which she found odd. "Why are you being so nice to me?" she asked the younger vampire after taking a bite of her smore, her eyes narrowing as she dropped the snack to face the raven-haired vampire. "You hate me. You should be mean."

"Well, I could be mean, if that's what you're into," Damon told her with a lopsided grin.

Alarms began to ring in Rebekah's mind. Her mind went to Gwen and Juniper, which caused her to worry. It was all too convenient that this vampire was clearly trying to keep her attention on him. "You're distracting me." She stood up, grabbing her discarded stick. "Why?"

Damon also stood up in front of Rebekah, feigning confusion. "Just trying to be a good housemate."

Rebekah smirked as she placed her left hand on Damon's right shoulder before dragging it down his bicep. "There's never a fair fight between us, Damon," she whispered into his ear before she stabbed him in his abdomen with the stick, grinning as he groaned in pain while twisting her makeshift weapon further into him. "Remember that when you get the bright idea of being good enough of a distraction." She pulled away from him and walked away to search for her friends, no longer in the mood to stay at the party.

"Damn," Damon groaned as he sat down on the bench and removed the sharpened stick with a pained gasp, leaning to one side to hide the blood as he waited for his wound to heal. He made a mental note to tell everyone else to listen to him when he warns them that he stood no chance against an unpredictable Original with temper problems.

Elsewhere in the forest with partying people, Gwen looked around for Juniper with no luck, so she moved to the parking area closest to the entrance of the area where the party was taking place. Instead of finding Juniper, she felt something off when she saw a beautiful young lady with long, brown hair that was in waves standing beside a car with a joint in her hand. She could only sense such loneliness from the girl, but her eyes widened when she saw that the girl's appearance faded in and out in certain parts, and she also saw that a dark aura surrounded the young brunette.

"You noticed?" Juniper's voice whispered in Gwen's ear, startling the latter.

"Yeah." Gwen glanced at Juniper standing beside her before she looked back at the girl with the lit cigarette in her hands. "Is she dead?"

"Very much so. She's the reason I haven't been able to have a good time," said Juniper, her brows furrowed as she looked at what she deemed to be a ghost. "And she's not supposed to be here, especially when she's a ghost."

"How can we see her?" asked Gwen.

Juniper hummed, her eyes analyzing the dead girl. "We're sensitive to this kind of thing, but we still shouldn't be able to see ghosts, unless…" she paused as her mind supplied an explanation.

Gwen turned to Juniper with an eyebrow raised inquiringly. "Unless…what?"

"Unless she found a strong foothold to channel. It's the only way for her to get here that allows her to have a physical body, but she'd need magic to be able to do that," Juniper explained. "Dark magic, which happens to be my specialty."

"What do we do?" Gwen asked the witch.

"What?" Juniper gave Gwen a confused stare, folding her arms over her chest. "Are we supposed to do something?" Gwen tilted her heard with a pointed look. "Just because you give me that look doesn't mean I get whatever point you're trying to make."

Gwen groaned as she watched the ghost walk away, feeling like they shouldn't ignore the spirit. "I'm just getting a bad vibe from her."

"You and your bad vibes," Juniper grumbled as she grabbed Gwen's hand and began to follow the teenage ghost. "You're lucky your bad vibes always mean something." She huffed, "I hate them." This had Gwen rolling her eyes while smiling for having gotten her way.

The two girls followed the ghost to a more secluded part of the parking area, finding the dead teenager standing in a corner near the school. Their eyes then turned to what the ghost was staring at, which was Alaric putting an unconscious Stefan in the trunk of a car just as Elena got into the passenger seat. They watched as Alaric closed the trunk and went to get into the driver's seat, but flames spreading across the ground surrounded the car, causing the history teacher to jump back.

"Elena!" Alaric called frantically as he ran to Elena's side and tried to open the door. "Open the door!" he instructed, still unable to open the car door.

Elena tried to do as Alaric said, but she couldn't unlock the door. "I can't! It won't open!" She tried once more. She tried unlocking it, but it would just lock itself again, to which she frowned at. "What the hell?"

"Uh-oh," Gwen and Juniper said simultaneously.

Gwen followed the flames and saw that they originated from where the ghost had been. "That's not good." Her eyes narrowed when she saw that the ghost was sitting on the driver's seat. "Is it just me seeing things or is the ghost sitting right next to Elena?"

"Unfortunately, you're not seeing things," Juniper groaned, having preferred not to get involved. "Klaus is going to throw a huge tantrum if his doppelgänger dies, isn't he?" she asked with a frustrated groan. "He might even blame me for it."

"Most likely," said Gwen.

"Ugh," huffed Juniper before she walked toward the burning car with Elena and Stefan still inside of it. "I could have gotten drunk and ignored my witchy vibes, but no…"

Inside the burning car, Vicki watched as Elena struggled to get out. Even though she knew that she was killing someone important to her brother and many others, she didn't want to go back to being alone without anyone else to even talk to. "I'm sorry, Elena," she said, even though she knew she wouldn't be heard. The least she could do was stay with Elena until it was over.

Alaric had tried to break the window of the passenger's seat with all his strength, but he was met with unbreakable glass. He gasped as the fire grew stronger and tried to reach for the door in his desperation before he was pulled back by Gwen. "What the hell are you doing?" he yelled at the girl, frowning when he was unable to recognize her.

"No, what are _you_ doing?" Gwen countered as she kept a firm grip on his arm, pulling him away from the raging fire that was getting too hot. The only reason she was strong enough to force him back a few steps was due to having caught him by surprise. "You're going to get yourself killed."

"I need to save her," Alaric said as he tried to shake off Gwen, but she kept him in place.

"She's going to be fine," Gwen assured him, receiving a perplexed look from the teacher.

"What?" Alaric asked her, frowning.

Juniper stepped in front of the burning car with her hands on her hips, gaining the attention of both Elena and Vicki. "You don't belong here," she said while looking at the ghost next to Elena, causing the doppelgänger to frown as she looked to the driver's seat, but she found no one there. "But we both already know that." She relaxed herself and dropped her arms to her sides before lifting a hand to the car, focusing on the flames. She took a deep breath and chanted, "_Na bi tuilleadh,_" Her spell calmed the flames, but it wasn't enough to extinguish them. "_Na bi tuilleadh!_" she tried again, but nothing happened. "Uh," she hummed, thinking that there had to be stronger magic involved to fight against her own. "Something's wrong," she called out.

Gwen stepped away from Alaric and approached the scorching car, ignoring Alaric's and Juniper's warnings. Her hazel eyes that were slightly glowing focused on the flames, the colors of her irises brightening as she felt the familiar warmth of her magic. She took a deep breath and blew lightly into the night air, willing the air to blow out the flames and whatever was giving them life. Not only did the fire completely disappear before the car blew up, but Vicki also vanished after being pulled away by Bonnie's magic.

Juniper sighed as she clasped her hands in front of her. "This car has been cleansed."

"Boo!" Gwen called out at the joke that she found terrible.

"Shut up! It was the perfect moment for the reference," Juniper yelled at Gwen as she went over to the passenger side's door, watching as Alaric struggled to open it. "Step aside." The teacher only looked at Juniper without moving, but he was pulled back a few steps by Gwen's grip on his bicep. The witch waved a hand that caused the door to be violently ripped from its hinges and thrown into the ground a few feet away, which had Alaric staring at the witch with wide eyes filled with incredulity. "Oh, come on. It's burned beyond recognition because of a vengeful ghost, so I think a broken door is not the worst thing it could have happened to it."

Alaric opted to ignore the witch and helped Elena get out of the car, getting her to lean against him as she continued to cough. "You okay?" He only received a nod from the brunette, since her lungs were trying to take in as much clean air as she could to fill her burning lungs.

Gwen took pity on the girl and approached her, causing Elena and Alaric to become alarmed. "I only mean to help," the halfling assured them as she lifted a hand that she placed on the skin of Elena's exposed collarbone. She closed her eyes and concentrated on her power and taking deep breaths herself as a faint green light appeared from beneath her hand.

The history teacher stared at Gwen with apprehension before he glanced at Juniper. "What's she doing?"

"Helping for free, so shush," said Juniper, crossing her arms over her chest.

Elena was suddenly taking a deep breath of air without trouble, feeling better than she did before and no longer feeling fuzzy from the alcohol, as if fresh air went into her body and cleansed it. "Thank you," she told Gwen as the latter took her hand off Elena. Before she could say anything else, the doppelgänger's eyes widened when she realized that Stefan was still in the trunk, so she went to it with everyone else following behind her. "Stefan!" she called just as Alaric opened the trunk to see said vampire stirring awake, so she helped him get out.

"Is there an insurance that covers ghost attacks?" Juniper asked out loud.

"Doubtful," Alaric sighed as he began to survey the damage done to his car.

"There you are!" Rebekah approached the group as she looked at Gwen and Juniper. "I've been looking for you two." She raised an eyebrow when she saw the damaged car and the state that Stefan was in. "What the bloody hell happened here?"

"Nothing much, just an angry ghost stirring up some trouble for the locals, which we solved," Juniper answered.

The Original looked at both of her friends, searching for any injuries but found none. "Are you two all right?"

"Aww," Juniper cooed. "You _do_ care."

Rebekah rolled her eyes in a playful manner. "Don't make me regret it."

Gwen shook her head at Juniper's taunting, giving Rebekah a reassuring smile. "We're fine."

"Yeah," Juniper said, motioning for Gwen and Rebekah to follow her to their car. "This party is a bust."

"Tell me about it," Rebekah said with a nod as she walked between Gwen and Juniper.

Elena saw the women were leaving and stepped toward them after letting Stefan go when she was sure that he could lean against the side of the cooled car on his own. "Thank you!" she called out to the three woman who had their backs to her.

Juniper stopped and glanced at the doppelgänger over her shoulder. "I didn't do it for you, but you're welcome." She turned back around and went to catch up to Gwen and Rebekah. "Okay, so let's trade marshmallows for some popcorn, a movie and snug pajamas," the witch suggested.

"Actually, I'll have to do a raincheck on that very awesome idea. I have to check up on something," Rebekah said as she stopped walking in the middle of the empty parking lot, causing her two friends to stare at her with confusion.

"What's wrong?" asked Gwen.

"Nik's hybrid didn't show up, so I'm gonna go make sure he's not dead," Rebekah explained.

"Please do," said Juniper. "The last thing we need is Klaus bitching about how terrible we are at doing him a favor."

Rebekah nodded with a hum. "Exactly."

"Be careful," Gwen told Rebekah, while Juniper made her way to the car. "And call if you need anything."

"I will," Rebekah said before she sped away, leaving behind a whisper of her fast movements.

Gwen went to turn around to walk the last few steps to the car Juniper was already in and turning on, but she squeaked when she bumped into someone. "I'm so sorry. I wasn't looking where I was going," she apologized to the person with a sheepish smile that fell when her eyes met the dark brown ones of a beautiful young woman who stood around six inches taller than her and possessed a slim body with strawberry blonde hair with parted bangs that was half up and the other half fell down past the middle of her back in soft curls. What caught Gwen's attention was the simple red dress the other girl was wearing that looked outdated, which also had a belt and other accessories made of leather added to the outfit. "Are you okay?" she managed to ask through the waver in her voice.

"I'm fine. Nothing's broken," the redhead said with pearly white teeth showing due to how wide her smile was. "I wasn't being careful myself."

Something about the girl told Gwen that she should get away from the woman, but she kept herself grounded on the spot, fighting to keep her body from shaking. She kept her eyes locked on the taller girl, preferring to keep her in her line of sight at all times. Her heart was beating too fast as her chest threatened to burst open due to how fear clawed at her very core, causing a lump to grow in her throat. She suddenly felt cold and she could tell that it was coming from the woman in front of her. There was something wrong, _so very wrong_.

"You all right there?" asked the redhead, tilting her head to the side.

"I'm fine," Gwen assured her with a slight stutter before honking caught her attention, causing her to look at Juniper in the car. "That'll be my friend. Have a good night." She walked toward the car and glanced back at the woman over her shoulder, but her breath got caught in her throat when there was no one there, so she jogged over to the car, quickly getting in.

"We just put out the fire. What's the hurry?" Juniper chuckled at how fast Gwen climbed into the car, but her brows furrowed when she saw the frightened look on Gwen's face. "You okay?"

"I'm fine." Gwen sighed and looked at Juniper. "I'm just tired. I really want a bed right now."

"Okay," Juniper said, not believing Gwen's reassurance but deciding not to push the girl for answers with the faraway look that was on the halfling's eyes. "I think we should just hunker in, give you some tea, get myself a nice glass of wine and call it a night. We've had enough excitement for one day."

"A little too much of the bad kind," Gwen sighed, deciding to forget about the woman she encountered. She just wanted to have some vanilla tea to calm her nerves and succumb into her comfortable bed to allow sleep to take her.

Juniper pulled out of the school's parking lot and headed toward the Salvatore Boarding House, passing by the same girl Gwen had bumped into with two men appearing behind her.

* * *

_**Rough Translation (French to English):**_

_**Oui, capitaine.-Yes, captain.**_

_**Rough Translation (Scottish-Gaelic to English):**_

_**Na bi tuilleadh!-Be no more!**_

* * *

**End of chapter!**

**I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter, and remember to speak your minds without fear in the reviews. Also, remember to Fave or Follow to your hearts' content.**

**You, my readers, are awesome and keep me going in this new adventure!**

**See you soon for the next chapter!**


	10. a bad day

**Hello, guys! I hope that you're all safe and making the best out of life. I bring to you the next chapter that I hope you will all enjoy. I am also very grateful and happy for the support you guys have given me, so thank you all!**

**Now, on to the review response:**

**-_xenocanaan_: Yes, Klaus did handle it better than what he regularly does with his siblings, since Gwen means something else to him who he can't treat like he does his family, which is quite a conflict for someone with his personality. The mysterious woman is a little tease for a future plot that will turn things upside down, but I am keeping her a mystery for now. ;)**

**-_GhostGypsy_: The ghosts coming back will reveal an event (don't know what else to call it without giving away a spoiler) from Gwen's past, but I don't want to give away what will happen between this chapter and the next few. It seems the redhead caused an uproar, but she is meant as a tease, so you guys will have to be patient as to who she is, but she is very important for the future.**

**-_Love . Fiction . 2020_: Thanks, I hope you love this one as well!**

**-_Guest_: Weeeeeeell, let's just say that the redhead and the other two are not gonna be friendly, but I don't wanna spoil, so you'll just have to read and find out, so hold on for the wild ride that is to come.**

**-_PrincessMagic_: Thanks, and there is going to be a lot more of Bex/Gwen bonding in the chapters to come, so stay tuned!**

**Disclaimer: ****I own nothing belonging to the Vampire Diaries and claim no ownership over anything pertaining to it. I only own my characters and whatever else that is not from the show.**

* * *

_a bad day_

.

.

.

Juniper mumbled to herself, "I can't believe the nerve of some people. Why on earth would someone want to rob a bookstore?" She walked around the room with her eyes roaming over every surface for anything she might have missed in her packing.

"I don't know, maybe because they're desperate students," Gwen suggested as she sat on the bed crisscrossed and watched her witchy friend pace around their shared room, collecting and storing the last of her belongings before stuffing them into her suitcase that had been placed on the bedroom bench at the foot of the bed. The halfling's eyes followed Juniper as the latter went through her mental list to make sure that she wouldn't forget anything.

"I don't sell university books," Juniper said as she continued to pack.

Gwen grew more anxious due to the fact that she wasn't going to have Juniper with her for quite some time, since she offered the security the young hybrid needed in a town where she didn't know anyone and its supernatural residents disliked their presence. Still, she had Rebekah with her, and they were getting along well enough. Gwen also knew that Juniper had to leave to take care of the robbery on the store she oversaw, so she couldn't complain or voice her concerns that were for her own benefit. Receiving a call from the police in the early hours of the morning was never a good way to start the day, and this resulted in Juniper hurriedly buying a plane ticket back to Chicago in a foul mood that got better after she took a shower.

"Am I missing anything else?" Juniper asked to no one in particular as she gave one more look around the room for anything that she could have overlooked. "I feel like I'm forgetting something."

"I think everyone feels like they're forgetting something when they're planning a trip back home." Gwen zipped up Juniper's suitcase before getting off the bed, her bare feet touching the cold floor. "You have everything, so I think you're all good."

"I'm not so sure about that," Juniper said as she gave a Gwen a disheartened smile. "I'm leaving _you_ behind in a town full of…whatever. Are you sure you don't want to come back with me?" she asked as she grabbed the younger girl's hands in a firm grip. "I bet Klaus would agree with me on this, which would be a rare thing if he did. There's no point in you staying here."

Gwen snorted with a playful roll of her eyes as she stood in front of Juniper. "First of all, I can't believe you're using Nik to get me to agree with you."

"Is it working?" Juniper asked with a hopeful smile and her shoulders hunched.

"Nope, it's not," Gwen stated with a grin, causing Juniper to release an exaggerated sigh as she threw her head back. "Second of all, I don't want to leave Rebekah on her own. We'll both manage, so you can leave without any worries." She took a deep breath. "Besides, I don't want to go back to Chicago to be locked away once more. I thought you of all people would support me in this."

"If it were anywhere else, I wouldn't have a problem with it," Juniper countered as she looked back at Gwen, raising an eyebrow. "You know, like any other town." She hummed as she thought about her words. "Except New Orleans."

Gwen raised an eyebrow. "Why is that?"

Juniper waved her off with a flick of her wrist. "Well, there's a rather large coven of witches living there with a strange practice of burying their kin with the purpose of strengthening themselves, so I don't want to imagine what they'd do if they caught wind of you," she explained. "Look, I just want you safe. You're the closest thing I have to a family, except for Missus Bixby."

"Honestly, it's like you don't trust us." Rebekah's voice had Gwen and Juniper turning to look at the Original leaning against the bedroom's doorway with her arms folded over her chest. "Gwen and I can manage a few baby vamps and stubborn humans."

"Don't forget the witch," Juniper reminded the vampire with a pointed look.

Rebekah nodded while waving her hand dismissively. "They can't kill me, and I won't let anything happen to our girl, so there's nothing for you to worry about."

Gwen nodded, her eyes narrowing. "You guys make me sound like a burden."

"Only if you make things difficult," Rebekah told Gwen before looking back at Juniper. "As you can see, you can leave with a mind devoid of any worries."

"I don't know how I'll be able to do that when taking Mikael into account," Juniper argued, remembering why Klaus had skipped town and left them stranded without so much as a call or text. It worried her how _the_ Klaus–a hybrid with no known fatal weaknesses–was so terrified at the mention of a single name that it had him running for the hills. This only proved that Mikael wasn't someone to be underestimated or taken likely, and people in the town seemed to have found him.

"If they actually found my father, we would have known about it by now," Rebekah told Juniper.

"What do you mean?" Gwen asked the Original with an eyebrow raised inquiringly.

"Had Mikael caught wind of Nik being in Mystic Falls, hell would have already broken loose and this town would have been turned inside out in his zeal to kill my brother," Rebekah explained, recalling the many other times she and her siblings had escaped Mikael's wrath, leaving behind a place to be razed by their father. "Trust me, he's hard to miss." She cleared her throat as she pushed back any unnecessary memories related to her father.

Gwen had heard enough tales about Mikael from Klaus throughout her life, and he was a man who she hoped to never meet or put a face to after hearing about the horrors he subjected his own son to. When Klaus talked about the father who raised him, he showed a myriad of emotions that she saw displayed in his eyes, but pain was the one which was most clear. It made her angry to know how a father could be so cruel and heartless to his child. And because of all that she knew about him, Gwen could only think that Mikael didn't love his children if he was capable to waste a millennium trying to kill his own blood, so consumed by his anger.

"See?" Gwen looked to Juniper. "No Mikael."

Juniper nodded with reluctance, letting go of Gwen's hands. "Fine, I'll keep my calls to one per day." She reached for her suitcase and dragged it off the bench with a grunt, pulling out the handle. "I'll also try to get things in order back in Chicago as soon as possible. I can also take the time to visit Missus Bixby in Florida after I settle things with the police to get her on board with selling the store, so I might be gone for quite a while." Her eyes shifted between Gwen and Rebekah. "Will you guys be all right on your own?"

"Come now, June." Rebekah rolled her eyes, only being slightly annoyed, but it was due to the amount of times the witch had asked the same question since she bought her plane ticket. "We're big girls. I think we can handle ourselves just fine, so stop being such a mother hen and go back to being fun."

The witch closed her eyes as she frowned, and her lips became a thin line. "I am not a mother hen. I just fuss _a bit_." She then opened her eyes to narrow them at the blonde vampire. She further elaborated when she saw Rebekah open her mouth. "That doesn't mean I'm a mother hen. I just have a problem with this whole situation."

"I just can't believe how fast you can go from a snarky smartass to a worry wart," Rebekah said and then snapped her fingers, "just like that."

Juniper huffed, "I am allowed to be concerned, especially when I won't be here to keep you two out of trouble."

"We will strive to be model citizens," countered Rebekah. "But I can't promise anything."

"That is not the least bit reassuring, but I'll take whatever I can get," Juniper remarked before checking the time on her phone. "Well, it's ten in the morning and my plane leaves in three hours, so I better get going." She looked up at Rebekah as she picked up her purse from a chair nearby to put the strap over her shoulder. "Did you get me a taxi?"

"Yes, I compelled the man to wait downstairs like a good little boy and put on some relaxing music," said Rebekah, huffing in annoyance as she remembered how rude the man was after she told him to wait. "With the attitude he had, he's lucky you're in a hurry. Any other day, I would have had him chewing out his own tongue."

"Thank you for that," Juniper said and began to make her way downstairs and toward the house's entrance with Gwen and Rebekah following behind her.

Rebekah sighed as they descended the stairs. "I can't believe we have to stay in this dull town."

"Only for a while," Gwen assured the blonde as they reached the first floor before going to the front door.

Just as Juniper was about to step through the threshold, she stopped and turned around to make one final protest. "I can just postpone the trip, at least until Klaus comes back."

"Go!" Gwen and Rebekah told her with raised voices and smiles on their lips.

"The sooner you go and solve your little problem, the sooner you return," Rebekah said when she saw Juniper hesitate to move from her spot on the doorway as she pondered about the pros and cons of her leaving. "We'll be fine, June," the vampire reassured the witch as she hugged Gwen to her side with both arms around the young girl's shoulders. "I'll keep us both safe. If you're anything like Nik, I would hate to see you get upset," she said with a grin.

"I doubt that I am as bad as Klaus," Juniper huffed, giving Rebekah a playful glare.

Rebekah shrugged her shoulders, still holding onto Gwen. "We'll just have to wait and see."

"You'll miss your flight," Gwen piped in.

"Fine," Juniper said to the younger girl, a smile breaking out on her lips. "I will say that I pity the fool who tries anything on you two."

"That's much better," Rebekah said with a small laugh. "Thank you for having _some_ faith in us."

"Yeah, whatever," Juniper mumbled, rolling her eyes at the smiling girls. She looked at both Gwen and Rebekah for a moment longer before shaking her head and forcing herself to stick to her plans. "Okay, I'm going," she sighed, not at all happy that she was leaving her friends in enemy territory without a witch on their side. "Please, don't hesitate to call me for anything. Call me first, then you can call Klaus."

"Yes, mother," Gwen and Rebekah said simultaneously.

"Well, mother knows best." Juniper rolled her eyes before gathering the two girls in a big hug with Rebekah being a bit awkward due to not having experienced such affections in so long. "Stay safe, both of you. And don't trust anyone in this town," she whispered to them as she pulled back a bit to stare at their faces, her brows furrowed with worry. "I'll see you guys soon." She stepped away from the embrace with a wide smile and walked toward the taxi to place her suitcase in the trunk before getting into the backseat, giving a final wave of goodbye through the window to Gwen and Rebekah who waved back as the driver pulled out of the driveway.

Gwen waited until the taxi disappeared from her line of sight with Rebekah, both standing on the house's entrance in their pajamas. The halfling had thought about mentioning what she saw the night before to Juniper, but she didn't want to add more worry the witch when she already had to deal with the break-in of the store, so she kept it to herself. If she had said anything about seeing another ghost that left her with nothing but a feeling of unnerving dread, Juniper would have never left and would have had more trouble to deal with back in Chicago if she stayed longer, and Gwen didn't want to be a burden. And so, the half-faerie could only hope that nothing would happen regarding the possible ghosts still haunting the town.

"So," Rebekah began, stepping back inside the boarding house with Gwen before closing the front door behind them. "What do you want to do today?" she asked the hybrid as they stopped in the foyer.

"Well, we can start with breakfast. Want to eat here?" Gwen suggested, receiving a nod from Rebekah.

Before either girl could say anything else, Damon appeared from the living with a pained expression and a shirt caked with his own blood around the abdomen area. He paused when he found Gwen and Rebekah staring at him with odd looks, giving them a onceover when he saw them in their pajamas and how their legs were on display due to the baggy shirts and shorts they wore, but he shook his head when Elena's face appeared on the forefront of his mind, but he still found himself admiring the physique of the women in front of him. "Well, I hope you lovely ladies are having a good morning," he said before a grunt left him, his chest still healing from the fire poker that had been embedded in his abdomen and his skin becoming smooth after being burned by the sun. "I hope you're having a better day."

Rebekah raised an eyebrow at the raven-haired vampire, her lips pursing as she raised her eyebrows. "What the bloody hell happened to you?" she asked, her nose catching a whiff of something that had been burnt.

"Yeah, you look terrible," Gwen added, looking Damon over for any more injuries. "No offense."

"None taken, shorty. Also, not that I'm pointing any fingers," Damon began with a lopsided grin as he leaned against the wall, needing a bit of support after the night he had. "I was wondering which one of you has a fetish for tying up men in chains and shoving a poker stick into their chest?" By the looks of distaste that they gave him, he discarded both girls from his list of suspects, since they didn't seem the type to torture him on a whim. Still, he was missing someone to interrogate. "What about your witch?" he prodded further. "She seems like a gal with a few kinks."

Gwen frowned at Damon. "Yeah, she's more of a gal who goes straight for the heart." She folded her arms over her chest. "Trust me, you wouldn't be here right now if she had a beef with you. Besides, we went straight to bed last night," she explained. "And believe me, she's not someone who wastes her sleep on torturing others."

"And where is the wayward witch?" Damon asked, since he'd rather determine for himself if they were telling him the truth. He also wanted any other possibility to be true and not the one circulating in his mind.

"You just missed her," Rebekah told him as she pointed at the front door with her thumb that she threw over her shoulder. "She just left to deal with a few things back home. Have you asked Stefan?" she asked with a shrug of her shoulders. "He could just be messing with you, you know."

Damon nodded as he began to make his way to his room. "Yeah, it occurred to me, but this isn't his style."

As both girls watched Damon go up the stairs, Rebekah turned to Gwen and asked, "Want to go out for breakfast instead?" She didn't want to find out how Damon got skewered.

Gwen nodded, preferring that plan. "I think that's best."

.

After breakfast was done with in a cozy café, Gwen and Rebekah decided that it was a good day to stroll around the town as they talked about the blonde's experience in school. It was a weekend and the weather was too nice to spend it indoors, so the pair opted to go exploring and get better acquainted with the area, given that they would be living in the small town for quite some time. It helped that there was no drama being caused by the supernatural residents of the town, so both girls were more relaxed and enjoyed their outing without needing to be on guard.

"Have you talked to Nik?" Rebekah asked Gwen as they walked down a sidewalk, heading for the Town Square.

Gwen shook her head. "Not today, but I'll call him later." She huffed as she readjusted the strap of her purse over her left shoulder. "I'm still upset that he ditched us." Her anger had been replaced with hurt, since she was shocked that he had left her behind like he did, even if she felt freer. "At least he left us all our stuff."

"Don't dwell on it too much," Rebekah told Gwen as they neared the Town Square. "Trust me when I tell you that this won't be the first or last time that my brother will disappoint you. I lost count a long time ago of the amount of times he has disappointed me." She opened her mouth to continue, but she didn't want to have Gwen believe that Klaus was all bad when he had raised a kind young girl, which was something that still baffled her. "Still, he does care about his family." She glanced at Gwen with one corner of her lips quirked up. "And that includes you, which is something I can agree on."

The young halfling smiled at the vampire. "Thanks, Bex."

Rebekah hummed at the nickname, remembering how only one other person called her that. "You're welcome, pet." She felt like she needed to find a better nickname for her much-younger friend, wanting to come up with something better. She frowned when they came to a stop on the other side of the street from the square, seeing a crowd of people gather around a platform. She also noticed that there were lanterns and decorations being set up. "What's going on here?"

"A festival or something?" Gwen guessed as a slim woman of medium height with short, light brown hair that was straightened and contrasted against her blue eyes walked up the platform to overlook the people.

"As a long-time member of the Historical Society," Carol began as she spoke into a microphone that was attached to a podium, "I am especially proud to be kicking off this day of festivities. Thank you, volunteers." Her lips widened and showed off her pearly whites, receiving a round of applause before she continued. "Tonight, we turn off our town's lights and flare up our lanterns in honor of the night of illumination started by our founders 150 years ago." She then gestured to a middle-aged man who stepped up to the platform. "Here's founding family member Tobias Fell with a history lesson." She then made way for said man to stand at the podium to begin his speech as everyone applauded.

"Sounds fun," Gwen said as she looked up at Rebekah, eager to find out how the town would look like with only lanterns lighting up the night. "Want to go?"

"Sure, but what do we do until then?" Rebekah hummed, also interested to know what the lights would look like. "We're hours away from nightfall."

Gwen looked around and tried to think of what they could do while they waited. "We could go to the Mystic Grill."

"Sounds like a plan," Rebekah agreed. "I am getting a bit parched."

The halfling smiled and matched Rebekah's stride as they walked toward the Mystic Grill, passing by people setting up everything for the night's event. Oddly enough, the halfling felt weird as she looked around, trying to find whatever it was that was causing the odd feeling within her grow. It was like someone was staring straight at her, causing the hair on the back of her neck to bristle. She wrapped her arms around herself to find some comfort as the empty pit in her stomach got deeper and threatened to swallow her whole. It was as if something bad was going to happen, and she hated how afraid she was when she was looking forward to having a good day with Rebekah. It frustrated her. Gwen shook her head and steeled herself, pushing back her agitation.

Just as they stepped onto the sidewalk in front of the Mystic Grill, Gwen and Rebekah took notice of one of the tables outside of the establishment, finding it occupied by Elena, the doppelgänger's younger brother and Alaric.

Rebekah smirked at the occupants of the table, meeting their cautious eyes without any problem. "Good afternoon," she greeted the group of three as she walked by them.

Gwen only offered a small, forced smile before quickly averting her gaze away from them, finding it a bit uncomfortable to hold the gaze of the people who probably loathed her for her affiliation with Klaus.

"It seems others had the same idea," Rebekah sighed after they entered the Mystic Grill to find it full of people mingling about and waiting for the Night of Illumination to start, the sounds of many voices talking overpowering the music played on the speakers.

"We can go to another place," Gwen suggested, since she couldn't see any empty tables and there were some people waiting to be taken to a table.

"Nonsense," Rebekah said with puckered lips as she looked around for the perfect table. She grabbed the brunette's hand and walked toward an occupied booth near the bar, standing in front of it and drawing the attention of the boy and two girls whom she recognized from school sitting on it. "_I am going to need you all to kindly stand up and look for somewhere else to gossip_," she said after making eye contact with everyone at the table. She stepped aside for the group to take their leave, smiling at them as she said, "Thank you very much." She and Gwen sat at the table with the latter giving the vampire a pointed look. "What?"

"You could have let them finish their drinks," Gwen said as she gestured to the beer bottles on the table.

"Oh, they don't mind," Rebekah waved her off, flagging down a waitress. "Yes, fetch me your best bottle of red wine, dealer's choice. And _don't bother asking about our eligibility to drink_," she said as she compelled the waitress before glancing at Gwen.

"What desserts do you have?" Gwen asked the waitress who had her brown hair in a high ponytail.

"We have strawberry cheesecake, brownie with vanilla ice cream, salted pretzel bites and a hot fudge sundae," the waitress listed off.

Gwen didn't have to think about, her mouth already watering at the thought of what she wanted. "I'll have the brownie with vanilla ice cream, please."

"And take this mess with you, darling," Rebekah said to the waitress as she gestured to the items belonging to the previous occupants of the table.

The waitress frowned as she realized something. "They left without paying. Nice," she huffed before smiling at Gwen and Rebekah. "I'll be back with your order." She picked up the scattered bottles and wiped down the table before leaving.

"Not much to do in this town," Rebekah remarked with her hands interlaced on the table. While she was enjoying her experience as a student, the town was already boring for the blonde vampire, given that she was used to bustling cities that stayed awake throughout the night.

"I don't know." Gwen shrugged her shoulders. "It's a cozy town, but I do wonder how it still stands with the amount of '_accidents'_," she paused to make air quotes with her fingers, "that happen here." Still, she had to admit that she would prefer to go somewhere else and visit other cities. "I can't say this place is on top of my list of places to visit."

"Oh, I bet Europe must be lovely around this time of year," Rebekah piped up, remembering the last time she was on the other side of the world before her mind went to a closer destination. "I also need to see New York, and let's not forget about New Orleans." Her heart thumped painfully for a moment at the thought of the place she felt she belonged.

"June said that New Orleans might not be a good place for me to visit," Gwen said, but she was still curious about the city. "Nik always moved us to large cities, but we never went near Louisiana or anywhere south." Now that she thought about it, he always kept them to the north of the country, never going too far south. "Did you go there?" she asked the vampire.

Rebekah cleared her throat, feeling a bit uncomfortable as to where the conversation was headed. "Go where?"

"New Orleans," Gwen clarified.

"Oh, yes." The Original vampire forced herself to smile at the young girl as memories of her time in the Big Easy surfaced, including the ones that pained her heart and the ones she preferred that remained buried. That city only had pain and heartbreak for her and her family. "My family and I lived there for quite a long while, actually," Rebekah explained after tearing herself from her mind. "We practically built the city from the ground, not that any history books will corroborate that."

"Really?" Gwen smiled at this, eager to know more, since Klaus never mentioned any of what Rebekah just said before. "Nik never talked about it before."

"I doubt he ever will, pet," Rebekah sighed, closing her eyes when she forced back her last memories of the one place that had become a true home to her and her siblings. "While we had some of the best years there, being a place where my siblings and I had actually spent in peace with little grievances," she paused to clear her throat as she looked up at Gwen with a pursed smile, "there were also many tragedies." Her eyes became downcast as she hoped the waitress would arrive to get some liquid courage so that she could loosen her tongue. "There was someone important to us whom we lost when we were last in New Orleans, so you can imagine why he might despise reliving it."

"I'm sorry," Gwen whispered, deciding not to prod any further with the sadness she felt emanating from Rebekah. "Mikael?"

Rebekah gave Gwen a rueful smile, saying with a snort, "When is he ever not connected to the darkest moments of his family's life in some way?"

Silence fell over the pair as they became lost in their own thoughts. While it wasn't exactly awkward between them, they each wanted to move on from the topic and onto a better one that didn't have them talking about the grim things in their lives. It frustrated them both how their conversations always ended up focusing on something gloomy, which tended to be connected to Klaus–directly or indirectly.

"And how is life out of my brother's shadow so far?" Rebekah asked as she broke the silence, placing her chin on top of her hand that was propped up on the table. "I can imagine that it must feel a lot more freeing."

"Well…" Gwen hummed as she mulled over Rebekah's question, carding her fingers through her loose strands over her right shoulder. "Honestly, I expect him to pop out from a corner at any minute." She still felt like he was monitoring her somehow, given that Klaus hadn't set up any boundaries or rules this time around. When they moved to a new place, he always told her to stay within a certain perimeter and never really left her without someone who he ordered or compelled to watch over her. "I can't really find myself. I've been isolated for so long that it feels so weird to move around without feeling like I'm being watched."

"Just forget about my brother. It's what I do when I want to have a good time," Rebekah said to try and reassure the young girl. "Any type of drink with alcohol helps with that, but the amount needed varies from person to person."

Gwen chuckled as she shook her head. "I don't plan on being a day drinker when I don't have your high tolerance for alcohol."

"Your loss." Rebekah shrugged her shoulders. "And this is your time to find out what _you_ want to do with your life. Forget about Nik and what he deems you should or should not do." She snorted as she leaned back against her seat. "He can very well shove it, so don't be afraid to tell him that."

A small laugh escaped Gwen. "Yeah, I don't think I can say that and expect him to take me seriously."

"Whatever version you want to say will come to you when the time is right and he has exhausted your patience," said Rebekah, smiling at the waitress when their order was brought over, noticing that Damon and Alaric were sitting at the bar, so she stayed alert. "You should watch out for the signs, like around the time you want to wring his neck." She served herself some wine into a glass the waitress also provided, keeping the bottle on the table.

This had Gwen laughing before digging into her dessert, enjoying the combination of the hot brownie and the cold ice cream. "The thought has already come up a few times."

"Good," said Rebekah. "Then, we won't have to wait too long."

Some small talk was exchanged between Gwen and Rebekah, enjoying their time conversing about the places the vampire visited throughout the centuries, the cultures she was introduced to and the people she met along the way. From the time Rebekah and her family were in Greece to the short time they spent in Cádiz before returning to the New World. Although the vampire couldn't really cover how she spent a thousand years seeing every corner of the world in one afternoon, Gwen only grew fascinated by everything Rebekah told her, and she was especially intrigued by the other Originals, since Klaus had only ever mentioned them in passing. It was only a few days ago that Gwen found out that he carded around his siblings in caskets, so she was extremely curious to know more about them.

"So, Elijah is the one who cleans up after you guys," Gwen stated after Rebekah told her a story about a fun and tranquil dinner Rebekah had with her siblings, which were very few and far between throughout the centuries.

"I think it's his hobby," Rebekah chuckled, taking a sip of her wine. "I can assure you that he is the best of us." Her smile widened the more she talked about her noble brother, and Gwen could see the fondness in the blonde's eyes. "And he always wears a suit."

"Always?" asked Gwen, raising an eyebrow in disbelief.

Rebekah nodded, swishing the red liquid in her glass. "Always, for everything."

Gwen had a hard time believing that. "All the time?"

"I think he sleeps in them," Rebekah laughed, imagining Elijah sleeping in one of his many suits, which she wouldn't put past him.

"Apart from Nik and Elijah, you have two other brothers, right?" asked Gwen.

"Yes, Finn and Kol," said Rebekah. "Finn's judgmental nature made it impossible to have a civil conversation with him, and he became worse as time passed. I wasn't really close to him, but I had hoped he'd come to terms with what we are," she said with a despondent sigh. "I believe the dislike he had toward us when we were human turned into hate after we turned. He is a very complex fellow, my brother."

Gwen hummed as she looked at Rebekah's gloomy face. "I don't believe he really hates you, he's your brother. You guys are connected by more than blood."

Rebekah's smile was bittersweet. "Oh, my family can be complicated like that."

"Maybe, but he has to have a soft spot for his baby sister," Gwen told her to try and cheer her up.

"Now that is a good joke, pet," said Rebekah, mockingly.

"Well, what about your other siblings?" asked Gwen.

"Elijah is Elijah, and Nik is Nik," Rebekah sighed before a grin grew on her lips. "Then there's Kol."

Gwen lifted her eyebrows, smiling. "Is he your favorite?"

"Kol is the youngest of my brothers but older than me by, like, a year." Rebekah smirked as she recalled the many fun times she shared with her wild brother. "He and I always got into mischief together, which irritated Nik to no end. I would love to introduce you to him, if he would stop getting on Nik's bad side."

"What do you mean?" Gwen asked, frowning.

"Let's just say that Kol doesn't fear Nik and does whatever he wants, which is the reason why he always lands in a coffin with a dagger in his chest," said Rebekah. "Not that I'm justifying the whole daggering thing, but Kol does know what buttons to push, and that is not a good thing to do with someone like Nik."

"I can imagine," said Gwen, finishing her dessert. "So, what is Kol like?"

"He's a handsome one, my brother." Rebekah grinned at the smiling girl. "He's very cheeky and unpredictable with a temper that can rival Nik's, but he does have a heart. He cares for the ones he loves, even though he has a funny way of showing it and keeps it hidden beneath layers of charm." She smirked at the halfling. "Should you ever meet him, don't tell him I told you that."

"I'll keep my lips shut," Gwen chuckled as she smiled at the vampire. "Well," she began as she looked around the bar and grill, "do you want to spend the whole day here or do something else?"

"I'd rather not watch people waste away at the bar," Rebekah answered, glancing at Damon and Alaric. "What do you suggest we do?"

"We can go shopping," Gwen suggested. "I have one of Nik's cards."

Rebekah perked up at this. "That sounds like a perfect idea."

"Great." Gwen slid out of the booth. "I'm going to the bathroom. I'll be right back."

Rebekah nodded as she finished the last drop of her wine. "I'll be here, trying to survive without you." She was really looking forward to discovering more fashion styles.

Gwen walked toward the restrooms, weaving through people to get to her destination. When she entered the hallway that led to the bathrooms, she bumped into a person who stormed out of the men's restroom, causing a small yelp to leave the hybrid's lips. "Sorry about that," Gwen apologized and paused when she saw that she had bumped into Elena, which had her frowning when she noticed that the doppelgänger had stepped out of the _men's_ restroom. "Oh, it's you."

"Yeah, and don't worry about it," Elena told Gwen while shaking her head, unable to even muster a smile after what she saw her brother doing with a deceased vampire. "I'm just in a bit of a rush, so I should have been more careful." She went to walk around Gwen but stopped before leaving to turn around to face the half-faerie. "Um, thank you for the other night," she said to a confused Gwen who tilted her head to the side, so the doppelgänger gestured to her chest with a wave of her hands. "You know, for whatever it was that you did."

"Oh, yeah, don't mention it," Gwen told her.

Elena nodded with a polite smile. "Still, thank you."

"Don't worry about it," Gwen waved her off with a small smile before going into the women's bathroom to take care of her needs.

After she was done and had flushed the toilet, Gwen went over to wash her hands but glanced at herself in the mirror over the sink. She ran her fingers through the lightened strands of her brown hair to have them flow past her shoulders. She also made sure that there was nothing out of place with her outfit. She adjusted her peach-colored, semi-sheered top that had a round neckline with short, cuffed dolman sleeves and a relaxed fit. She had matched the top with a pair of light denim skinny jeans and a pair of beige, ankle-high booties.

Gwen pushed her bangs away from her left eye and placed them behind her hear before she began to wash her hands. She kept her gaze on the cold water and soap that washed over her smooth skin. After turning off the faucet, she raised her head to the mirror once more and a gasp escaped her when she saw the smirking woman with red hair who she had seen the night of the party. Her heartbeat picked up speed as she stared into the young woman's shining brown eyes. Any other sound that wanted to leave her mouth got stuck within her throat. She didn't know what else to do except keep her eyes focused on the woman through the mirror, fighting to remain calm.

"Hello, again," the redhead said with a smooth voice, the grin on her lips widening as she looked at Gwen with malicious mirth.

The young halfling whirled around to face the strange woman but frowned when she saw no one there standing behind her. A soft gasp left her lips as she took a deep breath to calm herself, her eyes looking around the restroom in search of the girl with strawberry blonde hair. She knew she should have left, but she checked the stalls for any sign of the spirit she saw, coming up short. Opting to just ignore what happened, she turned around to leave.

Once she stepped outside of the bathroom, Gwen hadn't taken a single step before her mouth was covered by a pungent cloth and a strong arm wrapped itself around her midsection to pull her against a hard chest. From the cloth that had been shoved harshly against her mouth and nose, she could only smell something sweet, tempting her to quell her struggles to escape as she tried to push herself away from the person holding her captive from behind. The only other thing that occurred to her to do was to scream, but even that hard for her to do with her mouth covered, muffling her voice.

Gwen panicked when she realized that she was being pulled deeper into the hallway and away from the possibility of anyone seeing or hearing her cries for help. Fear was beginning to crawl up her body, causing her heart to thump painfully against her chest, which prompted her to fight tooth and nail against the iron-tight hold that pulled her into a storage room. She tried to kick or punch or scratch at anything, but she was getting nowhere, not when she had no strength or experience in self-defense or fighting. Still, that didn't mean that she wasn't going to make it difficult for her captor, even though her body began to lose energy the more that she breathed the strong scent the cloth gave off. Dark spots were dancing in her vision as her arms and legs began to fail her by the second, being unable to utter a sound louder than a mumble.

The young girl was terrified to think about what was waiting for her as darkness threatened to cloud her eyes.

Then, lips breathed cold air close to her ear and whispered, "Hello, poppet."

* * *

**End of chapter!**

**And that was my attempt at a cliffhanger, so please don't kill me. I admit that it might've been a rather slow chapter that was difficult to write, but it's a set up for the next one. I am very excited to get into a bit of drama surrounding Gwen. ****Still, I hope you guys enjoyed!**

**I am here and ready for any rants you may have and whatnot, especially with how I ended the chapter. I am loving the love I've received in your Faves and Follows and reviews, so don't be afraid to tell me what you thought and whatever else you have on your minds.**

**See you guys in the next chapter!**


	11. ghosts of horrors past

**Hello to you all lovely readers! Here we are with another chapter that was a struggle to write, but I hope I don't mess up or anything, so I will leave it to you guys to determine that.**

**Also, I am very grateful for the Faves and Follows and reviews you guys have given me, so thank you all and I give you guys my love!**

**Now, on to the response to your amazing reviews:**

**-_xenocanaan_: I am so glad you're enjoying this story! And here I have more for you to read!**

**-_GhostGypsy_: Yeeeesss, we're getting into more drama and some clues for future plots and stuff. And I am so glad you're loving it so much, it makes me happy to hear that. The redhead is another clue for a future plot, and she's very important. And Gwen won;t be kidnapped for the Mikael story line, since she will meet him and there will be changes as to how things go down. I will stop here, since I don't want to spoil!**

**-_Love . Fiction . 2020_: I wish! But Kol has yet to arrive, but I will try to make it spectacular. I am so eager to write him!**

**-_Guest_: Well, Gwen is in for quite an eventful night and Klaus will be none the wiser, since this will be something for Gwen and Rebekah to bond over. Still, love your enthusiasm!**

**-_PrincessMagic_: So happy you loved it! And yes, June is just full of emotion she can't and refuses to control. She's just very open and out there, waering her emotions on her sleeve.**

**-_littlemissy3982_: Thank you! And you don't have to wait anymore for another chapter!**

**Disclaimer: ****I own nothing belonging to the Vampire Diaries and claim no ownership over anything pertaining to it. I only own my characters and whatever else that is not from the show.**

* * *

_ghosts of horrors past_

.

.

.

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

6 years ago

.

_Sniffling bounced off the warm, cream walls in a cozy bedroom that had the windows' curtains drawn closed to keep the moonlight from filtering into the room where a young girl was curled up in the middle of the bed that was pressed against a corner. Fat tears cascaded down the little girl's olive-skinned cheeks, her big eyes almost shining with small pools of glistening tears. She hissed when she went to wrap herself further into a blanket that was draped over her shoulders but ended up rubbing her bandaged arms marred with painful wounds, all the while keeping a tight grip on the pearl pendant of her necklace. There were also bandages wrapped around her neck and legs, and there were also bruises that littered many areas of her skin that still throbbed and caused more tears to escape her hazel orbs._

_The small girl buried her face in her arms that rested on her knees that were gathered up to her chest, wishing for the pain in her body to fade away and the memories of the past few days to be erased from her mind._

_The bedroom's door was cracked open, allowing the light from the hallway to shine into the room. Klaus entered the room with careful steps, his eyes softening when they landed on the trembling figure of the girl sitting on the bed. He stepped forward and approached the bed while carrying a silver tray that had a cup of vanilla tea, a biscuit and medicine for pain relief on top of it, placing it on the bedside table before taking a seat on the edge of the bed, causing it to dip and groan under his weight._

"_Lyn?" whispered Klaus, turning on the lamp on the bedside table to get a better look at the huddled form on the bed. He released a heavy sigh to calm his anger when he saw how thin she looked. "I brought you some tea and a snack," he told her, but she still did not acknowledge him, keeping her face hidden away in her arms. "Sweetheart?" he tried once more._

"_I don't want any," was what her muffled voice responded._

"_You need to get something in your system, if only to take your medicine," Klaus argued gently, not wanting to force her to do anything. "You haven't had a decent meal in days." He exhaled heavily as he stared at Gwen, hoping to see her eyes._

"_I'm not hungry," Gwen countered. She really wasn't hungry, not when her head wanted to split open due to a headache and the mere thought of food made her stomach churn. And after having gone so many days without having something to eat, she just felt like she could not keep anything down._

_Klaus knew that there was nothing he could say that would help the little girl with her emotional trauma that was caused by the three vampires he slaughtered two days ago when he had found Gwen on the brink of death in an abandoned apartment complex. The Original cursed himself for having taken so long to find her, only being able to guess what she had gone through during the three days she spent in the hands of sadistic vampires. He could still remember her disoriented eyes with dry tears mixed with her own blood on her cheeks. He felt even worse when it had all happened under his nose, having lost her when he had taken the ten-year-old to a park._

"_I'm fine," Gwen told Klaus, not wanting to keep him watching over her. "I'll try to eat something tomorrow."_

"_I could do as you ask, but I won't," he said as he made himself more comfortable on the bed by leaning against the headboard beside Gwen, his feet stretched out and crossed at the ankles. "I don't think you want to be alone."_

"_What makes you say that?" asked Gwen, still refusing to lift her head._

"_Well," Klaus began as he fiddled with his fingers on his lap, "you're not exactly sending me away. I can only assume that it's because you want a hug."_

_Gwen did not even try to fight the small smile that forced itself onto her lips. "Really?"_

_Klaus hummed with a nod of his head. "Why, it's the best medicine for anything."_

_Without uttering a single word, Gwen's body uncurled itself and crawled closer to Klaus' side, finding a comfortable position where her tiny body was almost on top of him as she wrapped her arms around his chest with her head placed on top of the spot where she could practically feel every beat of his heart. Klaus coiled an arm around Gwen's back and placed the other on top of the hand she had on his abdomen, his fingers now toying with the charm attached to the bracelet he had gifted her on one of her birthdays. He gave her still-wet hair a chaste kiss before leaning his cheek on her head as he squeezed her close to him._

"_So," Klaus began with a hum as he stroked her back, "feeling better?"_

_Gwen nodded against his warm chest as her tears began to lessen, sniffling. She had not realized how much she needed it until that moment. "Why did they do those things to me?" She was so tired, but she was too afraid to close her eyes, knowing that the darkness would only take her back to _that_ house. "What did I do wrong?"_

"_You did nothing wrong." Klaus closed his eyes as he tightened his hold on her. "You're just a very special girl, and those…_things_ wanted to take advantage of how special you are."_

"_I don't want to be special," Gwen almost sobbed._

"_No one asks to be, but they are," said Klaus, a corner of his lips slightly twitching into a half-smile. "And you are a real special girl, but I promise you that those people won't ever lay a hand on you again."_

_The little girl lifted her head to look up at him with big, tearful eyes. "They're gone?"_

"_Nothing but ashes by now," he reassured her._

"_Thank you," Gwen whispered as she placed her head back on his chest, her hand that wasn't gripped by his was holding on to her necklace's pendant. "For coming for me," she added, her eyes drooping as exhaustion finally caught up to her with how safe she felt in his arms._

"_I will always be there for you," Klaus told her, his lips brushing against her temple as sleep took hold of her. "Never forget that. And remember, you're stronger than you think."_

_Gwen had never felt safer as Klaus' warmth embraced her entire being, and she doubted she would ever feel as such anywhere else._

.

Mystic Falls, Virginia

Present Day

.

A soft groan left Gwen's pink lips, her eyes furrowing due to the pulsing headache that was pounding from within her head as her body slowly worked its way out of the grips of unconsciousness. She took a deep breath, glad that she was not smelling anything sweet that would cause her mind to become fuzzy. She was about to reach up with her right hand to touch her throbbing head but found that it was weighed down by being tied to her left hand. Her eyes fluttered open, her vision trying to adjust, since everything was still blurry around her. She realized she was lying down on her side, feeling dirt pressed against her cheek. She managed to push her sluggish body into a sitting position against a rough wall with a grunt, now being able to clearly see that her hands were bound at the wrists with rope that was rubbing her skin raw. Her wrists felt numb, and a few bones in her body were cracking awake with every movement she made.

Gwen's vision adjusted to the light of the room, finding that there wasn't much, except for some torches in sconces on the walls. She looked around and found that she was in a round chamber, the stone aged due to the decades having gone by. She frowned when she saw an entrance of some sort that led deeper underground and away from the little light there was, but then her attention went to a pentagram that was engraved on the slab of thick stone that was near the dark entrance.

The halfling tried to remember what she was doing before she blacked out, since she was unable to recognize where she was. She remembered that Juniper had left town, and then she went to have breakfast with Rebekah before making plans to see the 'Night of Illumination'. She also recalled that they had been in the Mystic Grill, and it was that memory that had Gwen feeling like the air was knocked out of her stomach with a heavy punch when she remembered the smirking redhead in the bathroom and the incident that led to her losing consciousness, which had tears gathering in her eyes. She began to hyperventilate as the words that were whispered into her ears came back to her.

'_Hello, poppet'._

Heavy footsteps echoed around the chamber, catching Gwen's attention. She turned her head to another entrance that she assumed was the one that led out of the place. Her mind was scrambling for answers, but she also knew that she was just trying to keep herself from getting to an absurd conclusion.

"Well, hello," said a sickly-sweet voice that Gwen thought she would never have to hear again, especially the nickname that she so loathed. "Glad to see you're finally awake, _poppet_."

Gwen's heart practically stopped when her eyes landed on the tall man who was well built, possessing pale skin and dirty blonde hair that reached his nape, which was well kept and slicked back. His eyes were a steely blue that had green flecks. His oval face had not changed throughout the years and was clean shaven. She tried to blink a few times, hoping that she was dreaming and that she would suddenly be catapulted back into her body to jolt awake, but that didn't happen, and she now wished she was still unconscious.

"It's been a while," said the blonde man as he went to lean against the wall opposite to the one Gwen was leaning against. He stuffed his hands into the pockets of his leather jacket that was over a dark shirt, which was matched with dark jeans and brown boots.

It was all coming back to her, what Gwen had to endure at the hands of this former vampire and his friends. Cassian and his friends were a group of three who shared twisted personalities and took joy in the pain and killing of others. She could still remember how they bruised her arms and legs to keep her down as they fed from her. She remembered how their fangs plunged into her flesh in many places throughout her body with little care if they tore too much of her skin open. She had cried and pleaded for them to stop, to make the pain that had coursed through her like fire stop. The memories only had her chest tightening painfully, making her feel like she was suffocating. The worst of it all was that they always made sure not to kill her, always taking _just enough_ to take more later and make her last as much as possible. Oh, how she wished she could forget the ghosts of their hands all over her body, greedy for more of her blood and screams and tears.

The man grinned at Gwen, amused that she was not meeting his eyes as her breathing became erratic. "You remember your old friend Cassian, don't you?" he asked with a pout, tilting his head to see if he could catch her eyes. "There's no need to be shy with me. We got along so well the last time we met."

"Y-You…" Gwen began with a stutter and gulped down the lump growing in her throat, "you hurt me." Her throat clamped up, making it difficult for her to talk without her voice wavering.

"You _do_ remember me. I am so happy," Cassian chuckled, his eyes soft with a malicious smile on his lips. "I honestly didn't think you'd remember me, not with how young you were, but I do tend to leave a strong impression on others."

Gwen went to open her mouth but closed it when she knew that her voice would shake. She could barely move, feeling like anything she did or said would set him off. "W-What do you w-want?" she asked as she forced herself to clear her mind, invoking her magic as she thought about how she could use it to escape.

"Straight to business, I see," Cassian sighed, his grin disappearing. He pushed himself away from the wall to take a few steps closer to the trembling teenager, stuffing his hands in the front pockets of his jeans. "We always heard about the blood of faeries, so imagine our delight at having seen you, but then that damn monster slaughtered us just for having some fun when we were just shy of being a century old, still rather young for vampires."

A frown knit itself on Gwen's eyebrows, not understanding how someone could say what Cassian did with such ease and nonchalance, and make it appear like it was her and Klaus' fault that he died when it was his own actions that led to where he was now. They hurt her and Klaus did what he always did when someone threatened the ones he cared about. She did not know what had planned for her, but she knew he had no intention of letting her live and that terrified her.

'_I will always be there for you'_.

Klaus' words had provided nothing but comfort for Gwen, but that security was nowhere at the moment. She couldn't depend on him to get her out of this mess, not like she always did. She was reminded of the many warnings Klaus told her on repeat, about how cruel the world was to her kind. Still, she refused to believe that life outside of Klaus' shadow held nothing but pain for her, knowing that she needed to do more than stand by and expect others to help her. Of course, that was easier said than done.

Just then, Gwen heard another pair of footsteps echoing within the walls, causing her tears to fall down her cheeks as she realized that Cassian was not the only nightmare of her past who had somehow returned from the grave to haunt her. Even though she knew that it was better for her frantic heart to simply close her eyes, she couldn't help but glance at the person who entered the room, causing her head to swim as she fights to regain control of her turbulent breathing, her stomach twisting in such a way that it almost made her want to vomit. This person also still looked the same as she remembered; slightly curly, short, dark brown hair and vibrant blue eyes. He also had fair skin with short stubble and the same build as Cassian but shorter by seven inches, since Cassian stood at a towering six feet and four inches.

"And let me tell you that it was not a quick nor was it a painless death," said the newcomer as he smiled at Gwen. An unpleasant feeling went down his back when images of his death flashed in his mind, prompting him to shake his shoulders as if to shrug off the memories. "That was certainly not a good day for me, and I've been itching for some retribution, which is why we're here." His face became impassive. "That man had no right to kill us, not with the blood he has in his hands. It's wasn't like he couldn't get over your death in a few weeks or centuries."

Cassian scoffed as he nodded. "It's only fair that we settle the score somehow, especially when we can't kill the bastard. Simply put, we want revenge, and you're the key to make that possible." The blond turned to his companion. "Isn't that right, Evan?"

"Of course. The _great Klaus_ will finally feel pain like the rest of us," Evan said as he took a deep breath of air that carried Gwen's sweet scent, something he hadn't been able to do on the Other Side, given that his senses were nonexistence in that plane. "I didn't think I'd miss living so much," he chuckled. He had no idea how much he would miss a soft breeze chilling his skin.

Gwen closed her eyes and focused on regulating her breathing and just trying to not think about what had happened to her at the hands of the men in front of her. She cursed herself for being unable to do anything but panic, so she fought to calm down. Klaus was not in town and she had no one else to help her. "How are you here?" she asked after gaining some control of her emotions, managing to at least look up to their chests, still too afraid to look the men in the eyes. "You're," she paused when she felt her heart skip a beat before saying, "supposed to be dead."

"Well, some dead and living witches are messing with the mechanics of the Other Side, so ghosts are now able to materialize," Cassian explained what he had heard being whispered in purgatory. The blond glanced at his brunet companion, who leaned back against a wall with his hands in his jacket's pockets. He returned his attention to Gwen, noticing how her eyes kept straying to the entrance, and he knew why. "Oh, don't worry. Good ol' Al isn't here with us to share in the fun," he explained.

Gwen frowned, having thought that the men would have stuck together.

"Can't believe he's going to miss this," Evan huffed, disappointed that the most flamboyant member of their group was not with them. "Klaus holed us up in that house and burned it to the ground with us inside. We would have looked for his wayward soul, but we didn't want to risk losing sight of you."

"He's," Gwen began and cleared her throat to talk through the lump forming in her windpipe, "n-not here?" She somehow felt more relief than she imagined knowing _that monster_ is nowhere nearby. Out of the three vampires who had tortured her in the past, the one named Albert had been the true nightmare she wished she could forget, having been the one who enjoyed hurting her more than drinking from her and keeping the other two from draining her dry, but only to be able to inflict more pain.

"We don't know where he ended up, but we'll try to honor him." Cassian's eyes became downcast. "It's incredibly quiet over there, you know." He looked up at Gwen. "No one sees or hears you, but we never stopped watching you, waiting for the perfect opportunity."

While she believed that death was an atrocious way to punish someone, Gwen could not feel any sympathy for the men who had none themselves, so she could not pity them. The two vampires had no respect for life, caring for no one or anything else but themselves and their sadistic pleasures, which was why Gwen needed to figure out how she was going to escape as soon as possible.

"We have no idea how long we have on this side, so let's get started," Evan said as he pushed himself off the wall to stand next to Cassian, both looking down at Gwen. "We would have loved to spend more time with you, poppet. The thing is that we want the scary hybrid to learn his lesson more than anything else."

"And what better way to do that than by having one last drink of that delicious blood of yours before we're sucked back into that damned place," said Cassian.

"Exactly," said Evan.

Cassian's mouth practically watered at Gwen's scent, already on a high as he recalled what her blood tasted like. "We get one last meal with a side of revenge. There's not much else we can ask for, not when we're dead with nothing else to look forward to, except for when he finds your lifeless body that we'll be sure to deliver to his sister," he said as he reached down to grab Gwen by her arms and pull her up to her feet, smiling when she yelped and whimpered.

Gwen still refused to meet Cassian's gaze as her bangs fell over her eyes, remembering Klaus' assurances.

'_I promise you that those people won't ever lay a hand on you again'_.

Evan pursed his lips as he stood to Gwen's left and reached up to push her hair aside to reveal her neck, his touch causing her to shiver. "Let's try and make the best of this."

"Stop," she pleaded.

"No can do, poppet," Evan hummed. "We're dead. We need something to keep us going year after year when we can no longer indulge in life's finest things." He laughed, the sound lacking any real mirth. "As vampires, the closest we come to feeling any semblance of self is when we hold the life of someone in our hands. And that hasn't changed."

Cassian nodded as he glanced at Evan. "It's when we feel most alive."

"You're both insane," Gwen mumbled as she tried to get away from the dead vampire with her bound hands trying to shove Cassian away from her by pushing against his chest, trying to at least keep him away from her as he brought her closer to him. "Stop!"

This was the time to act, Gwen knew this. She refused to go back to being that scared little girl from six years ago. She finally overcame the nightmares they caused, and she wasn't going to allow them to interfere with her life again. If she wanted to brave the world without Klaus, she would have to do so with her own hands and the power she had. She raised her head for the first time and saw Cassian's vampiric features manifest in front of her, but everything became silent and still, as if time had slowed down for her. Evan leaned into the left side of her neck, whereas Cassian went for her right side. And while she was still frightened, her accelerated heart gave her the push to bring forth her magic that caused the veins under her skin to slightly glow green throughout her body.

'_You're stronger than you think'_.

Those words echoed in her mind just as she felt cold breaths kiss the skin of her neck. Gwen closed her eyes and allowed her power to make her body glow with a veil of a fiery green mist surrounding her that had her body brightening like a star for a just a second, but it was enough to cause the vampires to hiss and scream in agony. Cassian and Evan used their supernatural speed to get away from Gwen and slam themselves into a dark corner. Both vampires screamed in anguish as they fought against the instinct to reach for their face when every part of their exposed skin stung, their pale complexions now marred with vibrant red patches of wounds that appeared like their skin had been peeled off with a hot iron. This kind of pain had them thinking for a moment that they had exposed themselves to the scorching glares of the sun's rays.

Gwen groaned from where she had been roughly thrown to the ground, her head throbbing after feeling something sharp hit her left temple. Her hands were free after the ropes had been singed enough for her to tear them apart. She was a bit drained due to how exhausted she felt after using such a technique, but she managed to sit on her knees and gather herself before climbing to her feet. She took a few steps and almost doubled over, but she kept herself straight while using a wall for support as a grunt escaped her. She glanced over her shoulder to look at the writhing vampires and didn't waste another second as she bolted for the stairs that led her out of the tomb and into the dark forest with only moonlight to light up her path.

.

Rebekah wanted to scream out of frustration as she stood at the doorway of Gwen's room in the Salvatore Boarding House, finding it empty with no sign of a certain hybrid she had been frantically searching for all over town with no luck. It didn't help that Gwen had left behind her purse with her phone in it, so there was no way for the Original vampire to contact her. She had debated on whether she should call Klaus or Juniper on multiple occasions but always opted against it. If Klaus found out that she had lost Gwen, she knew that she would soon find herself stuffed inside a coffin for who knew how long. Also, even if Juniper had grown on her, she couldn't trust the witch not to tell her brother. This only left her with the option of looking for the young half-breed by herself. And she knew that her time was limited, given that they could call at any moment.

"Where the bloody hell are you, pet?" Rebekah huffed as she ran a hand through her blonde tresses while pacing around in the room, thinking about what to do next.

The blonde vampire placed her hands on her hips as she continued to walk around the room, trying to come up with a plan. If she couldn't contact Gwen via phone, then she would need a witch to find the stray teenager. The problem was that she had no witch to do a locating spell.

Rebekah paused her frantic pacing when her enhanced hearing picked up on some voices coming from another room in the house, paying close attention to what was being talked about. She bolted out of Gwen's room and appeared at the doorway of what she recognized was Damon's room, given that his scent was strongly infused in the air. Her sudden arrival had caused the two girls in the ransacked room who were about to leave to freeze on the spot when their eyes landed on the Original. Rebekah's eyes landed on Caroline, but her focus shifted to Bonnie, and she knew she had found her answer. She noticed that they tried to hide their nervousness under what she assumed was confidence with how their backs straightened.

"What's this I hear about a necklace and ghosts?" Rebekah asked the other blonde and brunette, deciding against opening conversations with a snarky remark. She grew annoyed when the only answer she got was silence as the teenage girls in front of her shared a look. "I know that neither of you are deaf," she said through gritted teeth, knowing that she needed to play her cards right.

"I don't think we owe you anything, so if you'll excuse us…" Caroline said as she grabbed Bonnie's hand to lead them out of the room, but Rebekah stepped in their way with narrowed eyes and thinned lips.

"If my intuition is correct, the necklace you're both talking about is one that belongs to me, which means that I have every right to know what you were talking about," Rebekah said, challenging Caroline, who stood in front of Bonnie in a protective stance.

"You mean _Elena's_ necklace," Caroline countered with a bit of attitude that Rebekah didn't appreciate.

"Well, if her mother gave it to her and she's worn the bloody thing for almost a thousand years, she can call it her own," Rebekah fired back, since she couldn't help herself from snapping at anything the younger vampire said. "Stefan gave it to her without my blessing, so that falls in the category of stolen items, which means that I am still the rightful owner. Now, I would really like to avoid getting into a pointless debate concerning the bloody thing's ownership any further, so please answer my question before I lose my patience."

Bonnie looked between Caroline and Rebekah, watching as the blondes stared one another down. She was not in the mood for this after finding out her boyfriend kissed his dead ex-girlfriend, so she stepped forward in front of Caroline. The young witch found that it was better to diffuse the situation before it escalated, considering that Rebekah was an Original vampire who could kill Caroline with ease and her magic was still faulty. "The necklace is at the center of this situation with the Other Side," she explained to Rebekah, ignoring Caroline's protests.

"That's just great," Rebekah scoffed, now guessing that whatever was going on with the ghosts had something to do with Gwen's disappearance. She looked at Bonnie and took a step closer to her, being only a step away from the witch. "The bloody thing still has juice in it, which means that someone is using it to keep the door opened for anyone on the Other Side."

Bonnie nodded, slightly surprised that the thousand-year-old vampire could figure out what was going on with ease. "The ghosts of dead supernatural beings who're within Mystic Falls are able to materialize as long as they have a foothold, something tethering them to our plane."

"You're the resident witch, correct?" Rebekah didn't wait for Bonnie to answer, since it was more of a rhetorical question. "I need you to do me a favor and perform a locating spell."

Caroline snorted as she crossed her arms over her chest, her brows furrowing as she sneered. "And why would we do that?"

Rebekah glanced at Caroline, who now came to stand next to Bonnie. "There's no 'we', given that you're not the one I'm talking to." The Original nodded at Bonnie. "Last time I checked, everyone is the master of their own lives, so the decision lies with her."

"I still fail to see why she would help you," Caroline countered.

"Why not?" Rebekah asked, her eyes going from one girl to the other. "If you are going to condemn me, at least do it on something I actually did and not because of my brother's actions. Yes, I did help him, but that was _his_ plan to free your," she paused to give Caroline a pointed look, "boyfriend from his curse."

"By killing him," argued Caroline, scowling.

"No, saving him from having his bones rearrange every full moon," said Rebekah, keeping herself from shouting and losing her self-control. All she wanted to do was rip Caroline's head off and force Bonnie to do the spell she needed, but that would take time she was not sure she had. "You're not the one with the curse, so don't pretend to know what he went through and question why he has no problem with what was done to him. I would have thought you'd rejoice at not having to see him suffer for the rest of his life."

Caroline wanted to argue further, but she had nothing when Rebekah's words had some truth to them. She wished she could scream at the Original as to why everything that happened at Prank Night was wrong, feeling nothing but animosity toward the older vampire.

Rebekah looked at Bonnie. "I am not going to tell you that my hands are clean from what happened, but my friend might be in trouble." She noticed how Bonnie perked up at this. "And this is the same friend who helped save Elena the night of the bonfire party when she was almost turned into charcoal." She pleaded to the witch with a softened gaze. "In return and to call it even, I only ask that you do a locator spell so that I can find her and make sure she is safe, nothing else." She took a breath and steeled herself to say, "You can even keep my necklace."

Bonnie glanced at Caroline, recognizing the look in her blonde friend's eyes. If it were up to Caroline, they wouldn't help Rebekah. The witch also found that there was no reason not to help the Original when it was true that Elena had been helped by both Gwen and Juniper from what she had been told about the incident with Vicki Donovan. "Okay," she said to Rebekah, nodding. "I'll help you."

"Bonnie," Caroline began, frowning.

"She's right, Care," Bonnie said to her friend with a shrug of her shoulders. "We do owe her."

"No, we owe the one who _actually_ saved Elena," Caroline corrected, earning a glare from Rebekah. Caroline knew she was being petty, but she couldn't help herself, not after what Klaus had done to them since the first time he came to Mystic Falls. And she just didn't want to help Rebekah in any way, she just didn't want to.

"Caroline," Bonnie chided her friend. "You do know we're in no position to argue."

Caroline glanced at a grinning Rebekah, her blood boiling for a moment before she took a deep breath she exhaled through her nose. "Whatever," she scoffed as she threw her hands in the air, refusing to admit that Bonnie was right. Although she wished she could say that she was capable of handling Rebekah, she wasn't about to find out and risk Bonnie's life.

Bonnie sighed as she turned to Rebekah. "Do you have anything that belongs to your friend?" she asked. "Some hair on a brush, a piece of jewelry or her clothes," she suggested.

Rebekah nodded and sped back to Gwen's room, gathering some of the halfling's clothes before returning to Damon's room. The Original placed the items she had gathered on the bed and looked at Bonnie. "These are some of her things. Is it enough?"

Bonnie nodded and approached the bed, placing her hands on the items Rebekah retrieved for her to use to find the vampire's friend. She closed her eyes and began to chant, "_Phasmatos Tribum Nas Ex Veras_." The more she chanted the words, the more power grew within her as the spell began to take hold. She frowned when dimmed images flashed through her mind, so she continued to chant as she tried to focus what she was seeing and get a clue as to where Gwen was. Her brows knitted into a frown when she recognized something she saw in the visions, so she pulled out of the spell and opened her eyes, taking a step back to face Rebekah. "I think I know where she is."

.

Everything was a blur.

There was no path to follow, no light shining from the shadows in the distance. There was no other sound than the crunching of leaves and sticks and anything else that Gwen stepped on as she continued to run through the forest, being careful not to trip on anything. The rushing of her blood was the only thing she could hear as she fought to take large gulps of air to fill her lungs. She could practically feel her heart lodged inside her throat. Her whole body ached as it screamed at her to rest, but her brain was pushing her to keep moving and not take the chance, even when she felt like her legs could buckle. She didn't want to die, not yet.

When the aches got too much, Gwen was forced to slow down and lean her back against a tree that barely hid her figure, her mouth wide open as she took large gulps of night air. Her hair stuck to her slightly sweaty forehead as she closed her eyes, groaning when she felt the headache that wanted to make her head explode. Her chest rose and fell with her rapid breathing, having run for who knew how long. She reached up to her temple and hissed when her fingers came into contact with a gash from where blood poured down the left side of her face. She stared at the red liquid on her fingertips and groaned, knowing that this would make it even harder for her to escape as it worked as a homing beacon for any vampire or supernatural being with enhanced senses.

Gwen's body froze when a cold feeling swept over her body, alerting her that she was no longer alone. She would have covered her mouth to stifle her breathing, but her heart and blood already gave her away, so there was no point in her trying to hide. As she thought about what her next move should be, she slowly sat at the base of the tree she was leaning against, her hands planted on the ground.

"Come on, poppet!" Cassian called some feet away from the tree Gwen was using to rest. He could see one of her hands that she failed to hide. "You're making this harder than it has to be, but it is entertaining." He sniffled as he wiped his hand over his face, still feeling the unpleasant sensation of having been burned. "I see that you learned a few tricks over the years. Consider me impressed."

"Go to hell," Gwen whispered, knowing that he could hear her.

Cassian laughed. "Already there. Now, do yourself a favor and come out." He took a big whiff and exhaled with a soft moan when the sweet scent of Gwen's blood filled his nostrils. "I've been dying to have a taste of you." He chuckled to himself at his choice of words. "No pun intended."

Gwen stayed quiet, her breathing finally calming down. She hoped that whatever was allowing the ghosts to materialize would be destroyed, so she needed to buy time. It was an irrational plan, but it was the only thing she could come up with, considering that she could not outrun a vampire. The way she used her magic earlier tired her out, given that it was a technique that released her magical power. If she were to use her magic like that again, she would black out, which was something she could not afford to do.

A sudden whoosh to her right startled Gwen, causing her to look up to find Evan grinning down at her.

"Found you," Evan sang as he reached for her. Before he could touch her, Gwen's left hand grasped a fallen branch and slammed it against Evan's head with every bit of strength she could muster, eliciting a groan from him. "You bitch!" he hissed as he reached up to his temple, getting angry with the amount of trouble she was causing them.

Gwen quickly stood up to start running but gasped and came to a stop when Cassian appeared in front of her, so she kept a firm grasp on the thick branch she still held on her hand. She took a few steps back to be able to keep both vampires in her line of vision, her eyes shifting between them.

Cassian chuckled as he gestured to Gwen from head to toe. "Where has this little spitfire been all this time?" He frowned at how she no longer looked away from him, but he chalked it up to the adrenaline coursing through her. "What do you pretend to do with that?" he asked as he pointed at the item Gwen was using as her weapon.

Gwen now held the branch in both of her hands, lifting it in a stance where she could fling it with ease. "Honestly, I don't know." She was well aware that she didn't stand a chance against vampires with a mere stick, but she wasn't about to lay down and die. She just needed to come up with a better plan.

"While I am amused and would have loved to play," Cassian said as he took careful steps towards Gwen, "we're in a time crunch, so stop with the dramatics."

"You're dead," Gwen began with her voice slightly cracking, "because of your own actions." She shook her head at them as she took a deep breath to steady her voice. "You hurt me and who knows how many others, so you got what you deserved."

"Isn't that a bit hypocritical when _you_ say it?" asked Evan, brows furrowed. "There is no amount of paper in this world to write the names of every single soul Klaus has sent to the grave, be it justly so or not. He's killed both guilty and innocent lives, and you think that's all right to do?"

"I know he's no saint. He's a cruel man who has done a lot of terrible things. I also know that I have yet to see what he's capable of," Gwen said, her statement surprising Cassian and Evan, since they believed her to be naïve and ignorant of the hybrid's true character. "I know the kind of man he is, but he's my family. He's the only family I have."

"That family is the reason you're about to die," Evan said as he took a step forward, ready to attack.

Gwen saw Cassian was about to charge at her, so she dropped her makeshift weapon and stepped back to place a hand against the bark of a tree behind her. Her eyes glowed as she connected to the tree's life force, which helped her have the tree's vines grow large and break through the ground to wrap around Cassian's legs and bring him crashing to the ground. Before she could turn her attention to Evan, he had already wrapped a hand around her neck before slamming her hard on the ground, which had her gasping after the wind was knocked out of her lungs before she dissolved into pained groans.

"Too slow, poppet," Evan taunted from where he crouched next to her, watching her scratch the wrist of his hand that tightened around her throat. He couldn't help but enjoy himself as she fought to breathe.

Gwen whimpered as her vision began to fade in and out. She couldn't focus as she tried to get Evan's hand off her, his hold on her being too strong. She even tried to focus her power on her hands to burn him, but he wasn't budging, not with her poor strength.

"Now, let's try this again," Evan said as he opened his mouth to reveal his fangs, but he became confused when he was shoved off Gwen by a blurry figure. He fell on his back next to Cassian, who had finally managed to free himself from the vines.

"I dare you to try that again," said the blonde Original as she stared down at the two vampires, grinning down at their widened eyes.

Gwen coughed as she propped herself up on one elbow, massaging her neck with a hand. She smiled at the blonde's back, glad to not be alone. She was so happy that she sighed in relief, "Rebekah."

At her name being called out, Rebekah glanced at the halfling over her shoulders with a smile. "Hello, Weny," she greeted, but her eyes landed on the wound on Gwen's head that was dripping blood. The smell of the halfling's blood was euphoric, so she had to turn away from the young girl and give her attention to Cassian and Evan as they climbed to their feet. "Are these boys giving you trouble?" The question was only a tease.

"Only a lot," Gwen exhaled as she managed to sit up.

"The other Original?" asked Evan, frowning.

Rebekah nodded with a smile. "The best one."

"Dammit," Cassian hissed, his eyes going between Gwen and Rebekah. He was too close, too close to get his justice and find some semblance of peace after his life was snuffed out. "It wasn't supposed to go like this."

Evan growled. "It is, so get over it. We still have time."

"Oh, goodie," said Rebekah, placing her hands on her hips. "I get to beat some manners into you both."

Just as Cassian and Evan lunged at Rebekah, an unseen force pushed them back once more, causing both Gwen and Rebekah to frown before their eyes landed on a woman of slim build and fair complexion who stood in front of Rebekah, fiercely glaring at the men getting back to her feet for a second time. The newcomer was the same height as Rebekah, possessing rich brown hair that was parted on the left side and cascaded down the middle of her back in waves, framing her oval-shaped face and contrasting against her pale greyish-blue eyes. She wore a mauve T-shirt midi dress that featured a V-neckline, cuffed short sleeves, and a flowy dolphin hem. For shoes, she wore a pair of cream sneakers.

"Who the bloody hell are you?" Rebekah asked the brunette woman.

Said brunette turned her attention away from the arguing vampires some feet away from her, her eyes landing on Gwen. Her lips turned upwards into such a broken but beaming smile that cracked Gwen's heart. The tall brunette opened her mouth, eager to speak to the young halfling, but something shifted for her and for both Cassian and Evan who glanced at each other.

One moment the three ghosts were there and then they were not, leaving behind only a whisper. Their sudden vanishing act had Gwen and Rebekah looking around the forest.

Rebekah approached Gwen and knelt beside her, smiling softly as she wrapped an arm around the halfling's shoulders to get her to stand. "Friends of yours?"

Gwen smiled at Rebekah as she leaned against the Original's side, exhaustion catching up to her. "More like a few ghosts of horrors past."

"And the woman?" asked Rebekah.

Frowning, Gwen muttered, "I don't know." And for some reason, that saddened her.

* * *

**End of chapter!**

**Here we are. I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter. It was quite the struggle to write, but I managed and I hope it's a good read. Remember to share your thoughts and opinions, no matter what they are, since they inspire me to write and give you guys something to enjoy!**

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**See you in the next update!**


	12. morning after

**Hello, all! Apologies for the late update, but things have been a bit hectic, but I did use the time and inspiration and your wonderful reviews to write more chapters.**

**This chapter will feel like a bit of a filler, but I always put little clues and "easter eggs" of sorts for future plotlines. It's also meant to show some bonding between Gwen and Rebekah. So, I hope you guys will like it.**

**I am also very excited to see that the story reached past 10,000 views, which I owe all to you guys, so thank you all!**

**And now to reply to your amazing reviews:**

**-_xenocanaan_: Well, there's a lot of Rebekah in this chapter, so I hope you'll enjoy it!**

**-_GhostGypsy_: I am so happy to know that you're loving the story! I'm also going to include a few more flashbacks of Gwen's childhood with Klaus but don't know how many more. And sorry for the wait.**

**-_Love . Fiction . 2020_: I am so glad you liked it and hope you'll enjoy many more!**

**-_Guest_: Yes, Rebekah to the rescue!**

**-_A fan_: I am glad you found your way back here and hope you'll love this story. I am also close to writing the meeting between Gwen and Kol, so I am also excited for that, if a bit nervous about writing it (I am such a contradiction). I am so giddy to start writing them, you have no idea. I also hope I can do them and their relationship justice.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing from The Vampire Diaries and claim no ownership over anything pertaining to it.**

* * *

_morning after_

.

.

.

Fangs.

Blood.

Maniacal laughter.

Gwen gasped awake as her hands reached for her neck, her eyes wide and mouth agape as a scream got stuck on its way out. She began to pant after having escaped her nightmare that left her a bit out of breath, sucking in as much air as she could to try and steady her erratic heartbeat. Her body was unmoving with the sheets of the bed having been thrown in disarray due to her tossing and turning caused by the disturbing scenes she endured in her sleep. She looked around the darkened room she occupied in the boarding house, no light filtering in due to the curtains that had been drawn closed to keep the sun's rays out. Once she was sure she was the only one in the room and that nothing followed her from her nightmares, Gwen dropped her head back on her fluffy pillow and placed her hands on her abdomen as it rose and fell with every breath she took.

Feeling as if she was going to suffocate, Gwen pushed the duvet off her legs before swinging them over the edge of the bed before planting her bare feet on the cold floor that sent a shiver up her spine. Her body was very sore from the events of the night before–as if she had been put through the ringer in a gym. Her eyes fell to her hands that rested on her lap, her fingers tracing her bracelet, reminding her that she was never truly alone in the world. In the past, she always had Klaus to protect her. This time around, she managed to survive and protected herself…to some extent, given that Rebekah and the strange woman had helped her live to see another day.

The halfling struggled to climb to her feet before making her way toward the en suite bathroom, her feet dragging. Gwen stood in front of the sink's white granite countertop and her eyes trailed to her reflection on the mirror in front of her. Even after the long shower she took last night, she felt like the remnants of the night before still clung onto her skin, still getting the sensation that her skin was crawling.

Gwen's eyes stared at her own body through the mirror and surveyed her wounds. There was a hand-sized bruise on her neck, which made her throat scratchy. She had also placed a band-aid large enough to cover the area where the gash on her temple was, still feeling it throb. Her wrists were still raw and red due to rope burn. And there were a handful of other scratches and bruises on her biceps, thighs, and legs that she hadn't paid mind to until after the adrenaline of being chased drained from her body, but they were small and would disappear in time.

The young hybrid picked at the bandage over the cut on her temple and peeled it off with a small hiss escaping her mouth, throwing away the band-aid in a trash can. She sighed heavily as she leaned on her hands that she placed on the countertop to look down into the vessel sink, turning on the faucet before cupping her hands beneath the cold water that she splashed on her face, wincing when her cut began to sting rather painfully. "Stupid," she reprimanded herself as she tried to massage the area around the wound to sooth the ache.

"I hope you don't mean me," said a cheery voice behind Gwen.

Gwen almost shrieked in fright, only to turn around to find Rebekah standing at the bathroom's entryway. The halfling released a heavy breath and calmed down. "Oh, you scared me," she exhaled as she leaned her back against the counter. She reached for a small towel that was folded near the sink, using it to dry her face. "Good morning, Bex."

Rebekah hummed, nodding. "Is it?"

"Is it what?" Gwen asked with a raised eyebrow.

"What I mean is…are you all right?" the blonde clarified as she pointed to her own temple in the place where Gwen's wound was. "Apart from that nasty thing you have there, of course."

Knowing that she couldn't lie, Gwen decided to simply shrug and keep her eyes focused on the white, fluffy towel in her hands. "It'll heal."

"What about everything else?" asked Rebekah, her eyes narrowing when she noticed that Gwen was deflecting her.

"Don't you have school?" Gwen countered with her own question, trying to change the topic of the conversation.

"I already went to school," Rebekah said as she crossed her arms over her chest. "You've slept all morning and afternoon."

"Oh," Gwen sighed.

"Weny?" Rebekah began, her voice having a bit of a warning to it.

Gwen raised an eyebrow at the vampire. "'Weny'?"

"What?" asked Rebekah, becoming worried that her nickname was not well received. "You don't like it?"

"No, I do," said Gwen, smiling at Rebekah. "I've just never heard that one before."

Rebekah clapped her hands once while smiling. "Even better. I'm unique, but you're not going to deflect my question." She gave Gwen a soft smile, watching the young girl exhale. "I'm worried about you, and me worrying about someone else hasn't happened for quite a while, so consider yourself special." If it were anyone else, Rebekah would have simply left them to deal with their issues on their own, but she couldn't seem to do that with Gwen. She couldn't turn her back on the teenager like she had done in the past to countless others without a care in the world. "And I know I should give you some space, but I feel like I shouldn't leave things as they are."

"You sound like June," Gwen mumbled, folding up the towel and putting it down near the sink.

"I'll take that as a compliment," said Rebekah.

Gwen playfully rolled her eyes before passing by Rebekah to go back into the bedroom to dive back into the bed and sit with her back leaning against the headboard. She frowned when she saw Rebekah sitting on the edge of the foot of the bed. "Why are you way over there?" she couldn't help but ask.

"Well, sweet thing," Rebekah began as she placed her hands on her lap, steadying her breathing and heartbeat. "The thing is that the scent of your blood is quite intoxicating. I may have a thousand years of practice, but I don't want to scare you by showing you my ugly side, not that I have any." She tried not to take deep breaths of the scent of Gwen's blood, so she cleared her throat while shaking her head. The mouthwatering smell really was as addicting as she remembered, which played with her mind as she was tempted to drown in the blood that reminded her of her favorite drink.

"I can understand where you're coming from," Gwen said as she scooted closer to Rebekah to sit next to the vampire with her legs crisscrossed. She placed a hand over one of the blonde's and gave it a squeeze. "But I trust you." And she really did, having yet to find any reason to _not_ trust Rebekah. She also felt quite safe around the Original vampire, much like she did with Klaus.

The Original released a nervous chuckle as her grip on Gwen's hand tightened just a bit, feeling her body tingle due to how insecure she felt with her self-control, something that she thought she had mastered centuries ago. "Has anyone ever told you that you're too trusting, Weny?" she asked the halfling. "We barely know each other."

"It's come up," Gwen answered with a shrug of her shoulder, taking her hand back to place it on her lap. She was a bit peeved by the truth in Rebekah's words, about how they barely knew each other, but she wanted to change that. She wanted to get along with Klaus' sister, wanting to know more about _who_ she was than _what_ she was and who she was related to. "I'm still going to trust you."

Rebekah nodded before she took a deep breath before saying, "I hope I'm deserving enough of that trust for you to be able to speak freely with me." She gave Gwen a pointed look. "Now, you told me you didn't know the woman we saw, but are you going to tell me who those men were?"

Gwen sighed as her eyes became downcast, taking a moment to gather her thoughts. "They were some vampires obsessed with making a sport out of feeding on people, so they formed their little group," she began to explain, finding it easy to speak about it after the years that had passed. She had only spoken about this to June, since Klaus already knew everything and never pushed her to talk about it, something she was grateful for. "They got wind of me and what I was when I was ten, I think. Nik and I were in Philadelphia at the time." She paused as she frowned when memories she thought that still rattle her no longer affected her so much. "They took me and fed from me and hurt me for…" she trailed off as she tried to remember how long she had been kept in that house by the three vampires. "I think it was for two days or something." She shook her head to keep herself from thinking about the pain she had to endure. "It was so dark, and I was in so much pain that any sense of time was lost to me."

While a good amount of time had passed, Gwen's body still experienced and involuntary tremble when her mind brought forth the memory of their hands running over her skin as they drank and licked her blood. Such memories made her nauseated, wishing she didn't have to remember that in such vivid detail.

Rebekah sighed through her nose, knowing that this was a story that she did not need to prod Gwen for more details. "Was it only those two?" she asked, needing to know if there were any other living vampires out for revenge.

"There was another," Gwen told her, not wanting to say the name of the vampire for fear of him suddenly materializing at the mere mention of his name. "Nik said he tortured them for a bit before leaving them to burn inside the house that they kept me in. He stayed there until the place was nothing but ashes."

"Good riddance," Rebekah sighed before she placed a hand on top of Gwen's, rubbing her thumb over the girl's knuckles. "I'm so sorry that happened to you," she told the halfling, her eyes sympathetic as they locked with Gwen's. "Your kind is always suffering at the hands of others, but rest assured that you have nothing to worry about with me."

"Thanks, Bex," Gwen said, smiling. "It's a bit disturbing, knowing that they might be watching me right now from beyond the grave."

"Don't even think about that. It's over now," said Rebekah, raising an eyebrow. "Let's just put yesterday's dreadful night and everything else related to it behind us."

Gwen took another deep breath and concentrated on releasing all the tension in her body with her exhale. "You're right," she sighed. "I'm just a little bummed we didn't get to see the light show. It would have been our first time hanging out."

"There are more spectacular ones around the world that we could go to, so don't be gloomy about that," Rebekah said with a wave of her hand in dismissal. "Also, we have many other days to hang out and have fun."

"Promise?" Gwen asked as she lifted a pinky for Rebekah to take with her own.

"Promise," Rebekah said, intertwining her own pinky with Gwen's to seal their promise. She huffed, hating herself for what she was about to say. "I despise the words that are going to come out of my mouth, but I think it's best that you stay holed up in this place until that wound of yours heals." She didn't want to make Gwen feel like she was a prisoner, but she couldn't trust the local vampires who were much younger and could lose control of themselves.

"Well, if you can get me some herbs, I'll be able to speed up the healing process," Gwen suggested, catching Rebekah's attention. "I can make a salve with my magic."

"What do you need?" Rebekah immediately asked, wanting to help Gwen anyway she could after she failed to keep the girl from getting hurt.

"Some yarrow and arnica," Gwen told her. "I can make the same ointment that I used after you choked me." A teasing grin grew on Gwen's face. "You know, when we met."

Rebekah chuckled before giving Gwen a sheepish smile, now remembering how the halfling used a paste for her neck on the trip from Chicago to Mystic Falls, which helped speed up the healing process. "Have I apologized for that?"

Gwen nodded. "I believe so."

"I'm apologizing again, and I mean it this time." Rebekah stood up and looked down at Gwen with a stern gaze. "Now, while I'm gone, I need you to stay in this house, preferably this room. I don't want to take any risks, since the resident vampires are still babies and could have little to no control over themselves." She then placed her hands on the halfling's shoulders and bent at the waist to lock eyes with the younger girl. "Promise me that you'll do as I ask."

"I promise," said Gwen, smiling at Rebekah as she recognized the concern swimming in the blonde's light blue eyes.

"I'll be back as soon as I can, so stay put," Rebekah said as she straightened up.

Gwen chuckled. "You're really starting to sound like June."

"Again, I will be taking that as a compliment," Rebekah said before pointing at Gwen's head with a wave of her hand. "And cover that up. We don't need you stinking up the place."

"Yes, mother dearest," Gwen teased with a grin.

"You're lucky I like you," Rebekah said with a roll of her eyes. She went to leave the room but stopped at the doorway to glance at the hazel-eyed girl one more time. "Yarrow and arnica, correct?"

Gwen's answer was an affirmative nod, watching the vampire leave with a flick of her hair over her shoulder. Now that she was alone, the half-fae slumped back and fell on the plush bed, staring up at the ceiling with her arms spread on either side of her. She was hungry, but she was too sluggish to get up, even though she needed to do a few things as she waited for Rebekah to get back. She also wondered how Rebekah would find the plants she needed but decided to trust in the Original's skills, opting to take a short nap.

.

Damon groaned as he pushed against the invisible wall keeping him from entering the small cavern that Mason had led him to the night before. He released a frustrated sigh under his breath when he was pushed back, cursing witches and their magic in his mind. While Alaric was helping him and keeping him posted about what was in the cave, it wasn't the same as him being able to go inside and taking a look around with his own eyes. And it didn't matter what he tried to get a better look of what Mason and Alaric had seen, he couldn't catch more than a glimpse of a few figures on the wall, and this only served to irritate him more than he already was.

All this time, Damon thought that there was no hope of ever getting rid of Klaus after their search for Mikael led nowhere, but then this little place no living person was aware it existed suddenly appeared with the help of a ghost. He couldn't help but be a bit ecstatic that there could be small chance to get Klaus out of their lives for good, but then he was still skeptical about it all, finding that it was best not to get his hopes up too high.

"I never catch a break, do I?" the raven-haired vampire muttered to himself, desperate to know the secrets within the cavern.

"Damon?" Alaric's voice echoed throughout the tunnels, alerting said vampire to the arrival of the man who was his friend once more after they hatched things out.

"Still here, just as you left me," Damon responded without turning around, still fighting the invisible barrier.

The history teacher appeared behind Damon with a flashlight to light his way and a few cases in hand with Bonnie helping him carry his things behind him with her own flashlight. "Have you been standing here since I left?" Alaric asked, frowning at the vampire.

Damon sighed heavily. "I have a problem, Ric. It's an invincible ass of a hybrid who can't be killed and wants to harvest the blood of Elena to make himself an army of adorable but lethal hybrid puppies," he said, shrugging his shoulders. "But, as luck will have it, there might be a solution to such a conundrum in there," he added as he pointed at the cave he couldn't get into with his index finger. "So, excuse me for being a little bit obsessed with this place."

"So, no luck getting in?" Alaric mocked as he walked past Damon to enter the cavern that was blocked to vampires.

"None whatsoever," Damon huffed, turning to Bonnie. "Thanks for the helping hand, witchy," he greeted the teenage girl. "Anything you can do about this?" he asked as he tried to stick his hand through the barrier keeping him out, groaning when he was repelled for the umpteenth time. "It's incredibly annoying."

Bonnie shook her head as she entered the cave behind Alaric while lighting her path with her own flashlight, being mindful of her steps to keep herself from tripping on anything. "I don't even know who the caster is," she said to Damon. "It's a waste of time trying to figure out the spell and its mechanics to be able to reverse it."

"Great," huffed Damon.

"Stop pouting," Alaric scolded the vampire, putting down his flashlight and cases that had lighting stands he would be able to place around the cave to light up the walls. He pulled out a lantern from a bag he had unstrapped from his back to illuminate the place in the meantime. "Be grateful we're here," he said as he got to work on assembling one of the lighting stands.

"Oh, do you have something better to do than to get vengeance on the hybrid prick?" asked Damon.

Alaric rolled his eyes. "Whatever."

Bonnie looked around the dim cave while pointing at different parts with her light, letting Alaric set up his equipment as she scrutinized the drawings on the walls, not really paying too much attention to the details of each symbol. "So," she began as she put down the bags holding Alaric's equipment next to him, "what am I doing here?" She frowned when she felt something odd about the place, which prompted her to approach a wall where some drawings were.

"We need you to check something out for us, since you might have a spiritual vision or something," Damon answered Bonnie's question. "It's mostly wishful thinking."

"I don't know how I can help in the state I'm in," Bonnie said with pursed lips. "The Spirits have made it pretty clear how they feel about me by cutting me off, so my connection to them and magic is a bit rocky at the moment." Though, she did feel more confident in herself after seeing Grams, the latter's last words from last night resounding in her mind.

"Yeah, well, screw them." Damon's eyes then turned to the teacher and jerked his head. "Show her, Ric."

"Well, Damon kept insisting that this place had a peculiar scent, like blood," Alaric began as he stopped trying to put together a stand. He turned off the lantern and motioned for Bonnie to turn off her own light, allowing darkness to engulf the cave. He then picked up a different flashlight from his bag before he approached Bonnie. "I didn't see blood anywhere at first glance, so I thought to have a better look around." He turned on the flashlight to reveal that it was a blacklight, pointing it at the wall that Bonnie stood in front of. "Now, see how some of these images glow?"

Bonnie frowned when she saw that Alaric was right. While some pictures were hard to see in the dark with the blacklight on them, there were others that glowed. "Were those made with blood?" she asked, referencing to the gleaming drawings.

"Apparently so," said Alaric.

Damon grinned and said, "It can also be–"

"Shut up," Alaric silenced the smirking vampire.

"Look, I can tell that it's not just any blood, so I need you to check who or what it belonged to," said Damon, turning Bonnie's and Alaric's attention to where he was leaning against the entrance to the cave with his arms crossed over his chest. "You can say that I'm just a bit curious to confirm my suspicions."

Bonnie looked to the drawings and approached them, taking careful steps with only the blacklight to light her way. It was odd, but she did feel the strong presence of magic coming from the glowing figures that pulled her in, and she could tell that it was ancient. She lifted a hand and brushed her fingertips over a symbol that appeared to be a star with seven points when she noticed that the glow of the drawings was a mixture between green and gold, but this action resulted in the young witch's eyes snapping closed as her face scrunched up due to being assaulted with images that flashed through her mind.

The first image the Bennett witch saw was a forest, as if she were running through it. The air was so refreshing, as if her whole body was being purified. The image changed like mist being cleared, and then Bonnie saw what she assumed was a settlement with many people walking about, and among them was smiling Klaus talking with Elijah, Rebekah, another man who looked quite a bit like Elijah and a young boy before they were joined by a blonde woman. The image changed once more to that of a beautiful girl with long, flaming hair that had flowers weaved into the tresses, and she was running in the forest with a wide smile while throwing glances over her shoulder at the blonde girl with long hair as golden as the sun running behind the redhead with her own big smile. And then it was nighttime over the settlement, and she could hear such joyous laughter that slowly turned into horrified screams before seeing fire engulfing many homes.

Gasping as her eyes sprung wide open, Bonnie retracted her fingers from the wall as if it had burned her hand and hurriedly stepped backwards, which had her stumbling before falling on her behind. She blinked away the haziness in her vision, shaking her head as her mind worked to process that she was back to the present and not lost in some visions.

"Bonnie!" Alaric turned off the blacklight he dropped and went to turn on the lantern before kneeling beside a panting Bonnie, placing his hands on her shoulders from behind.

"What happened?" Damon asked, his voice echoing.

Alaric sat beside Bonnie. "You okay?"

Unable to find her voice just yet, Bonnie nodded at Alaric as she tried to process what she saw and perceived from the magic still engraved in the walls. It had been a weird experience. She felt like her body came alive with an electrifying jolt waking up every inch of her body just by touching the dried blood.

"How about it, oracle?" asked Damon, his words causing Alaric and Bonnie to frown at him.

Bonnie shook her head. "I think you should exercise some patience."

Damon scoffed with a roll of his eyes. "Spare me. I'm the one stuck outside of the cave of wonders."

"What help would you be?" scoffed Alaric.

"I resent that," Damon argued, feigning hurt as he placed a hand over the spot on his chest where his heart was situated. "You wound my undead heart."

"Didn't know you had one," Bonnie hummed, unconvinced.

"Can we get on with it?" Damon asked, becoming irritated.

"You mind giving her a break?" Alaric argued as he glanced at the oldest Salvatore.

"I think I know what it is," Bonnie said as she stood up with Alaric's help. She took a few steps to be in Damon's line of sight. "It _is_ blood, but it's as if it was _made_ of magic," she confirmed, earning a nod from Damon. She glanced between the two men. "It seems like some of these images were simply carved on the wall, but others were carved with…" she trailed off as she tried to come up with a word that would best describe what she wanted to communicate.

"Magical blood?" Damon supplied.

"Yeah, let's go with that," Bonnie said while nodding.

"That can mean that we have different stories or different authors." Alaric wondered aloud as he looked around the walls, his eyes roaming over the pictures. "Now, the tricky thing is figuring out what it all means."

Bonnie nodded. "This is going to take a while. There are a lot of pictures." She looked at Damon. "I can tell you that the blood and magic belonged to a faerie."

Alaric turned to Bonnie with a raised eyebrow. "A faerie was here?" He looked back at the symbols. "There were faeries in Mystic Falls?"

"Thought so," said Damon. "The scent of the blood is too strong, more so than the half-breed taking residence in my house." He closed his eyes as a whine left him while throwing his head back. "This isn't going to be a picnic, is it?"

Alaric shook his head with a hum as he and Bonnie looked at the walls around them.

.

Gwen had to admit that the Salvatore Boarding House was grand and oddly cozy for such a big place, having arrived to this conclusion after touring the entire home from the attic to the basement in a pair of dark gray skinny sweatpants that she matched with a cropped, red t-shirt and a pair of fluffy, pink socks. She needed a way to stretch her limbs, so she set about to explore every room after making sure that her cut was bandaged and there was no one else in the house, not wanting to test if Rebekah could match Klaus' overprotectiveness.

While the house had an atmosphere that was a bit dark and stuffy for her liking when it had windows to solve those faults, she liked that the rooms were big with large windows that showed a nice view of the forest surrounding the house and allowed natural light to brighten up any room when the blinds weren't closed. It really was a nice place, but she did find that it could be a bit lonely for only two brothers in such a big house, which was something she could relate to, given how she had mostly lived in big homes with Klaus or no one else whenever he had business to take care of.

Now, the room that she enjoyed the most was the library for the substantial amount of books it had, which was where she now found herself in as she held onto a mug of vanilla tea that she had prepared for herself in the kitchen. She walked along the shelves that lined the walls, her big eyes surveying the many options she had to pick out from, looking for a book to delve into to pass the time.

Gwen finally settled on _Anna Karenina_, her fingers grasping the book's smooth spine and pulling it out from where it was wedged between books. Her hazel eyes looked over the words on the back, the summary further piquing her interest. She loved how someone could live a completely different life by reading about another, diving into another world her imagination helped create and bring to life in her mind's eye.

And so, with book in hand, Gwen headed for the kitchen to wash her mug and leave it to dry before heading back to her room. Just as she was passing by the foyer, the front door was opened and Elena stepped inside, closing the door behind her. The doppelgänger slightly faltered when her eyes landed on Gwen. It took a moment for Elena to realize that she was just staring at the halfling, so she approached Gwen with a smile that the half-fae knew was forced.

"Hello," Gwen greeted, deciding to be the polite one as she hugged her book to her chest with one arm.

"Hey," Elena returned the greeting a bit awkwardly as she gripped the strap of her purse that was over her shoulder. She frowned when she saw the bandage on Gwen's forehead, the marks on the neck and wrists and the few bruises here and there. "Are you okay? What happened to you?"

Gwen shrugged with pursed lips. "Some ghosts from my past still had a beef with me."

"Yeah, Bonnie said that the Other Side was cracked open," Elena explained the shorter girl.

"They kind of mentioned something about that," said Gwen.

"But she closed it," Elena reassured Gwen.

"That's good," Gwen sighed in relief, glad that she would not have to see Cassian or Evan anytime soon, let alone Al. "Vengeful vampires are not a good way to spend the night."

Elena nodded with a huff. "Tell me about it." She cleared her throat and remembered why she had come by. "Have you seen Damon anywhere?" she asked, brows slightly furrowed.

"No." Gwen shook her head. "Other than Rebekah, there's no one else in the house." Now that she thought about it, she hadn't seen Stefan either.

"Of course," Elena said with a groan as she fished her phone out of her purse to check if she had missed a call or if her messages got a response, getting irritated with the oldest Salvatore for dodging her for some reason. She put away her phone and turned to Gwen, not liking how beaten up the young girl was. "Do you need something?" she asked, wanting to offer some help. "I can take you to see a doctor or something."

"No, thanks," Gwen said, perking up when she saw that the front door was silently opened behind Elena. "I've got it covered."

"Are you sure?" asked Elena.

"I think she's made herself quite clear that your services are not needed," said the accented voice that belonged to Rebekah, which startled Elena. The doppelgänger turned on her heel to face the Original vampire who was carrying a brown paper bag in one hand. "If you're looking for either of your boyfriends, go search for them elsewhere," said the blonde, walking toward Elena with slow steps and an imposing aura.

Gwen tilted her head at Rebekah. "She wasn't doing any harm, Bex."

Rebekah glanced at Gwen before her eyes returned to Elena. "I find that hard to believe. Her ancestors have always been nothing but trouble, and this one seems to be no different."

"I'm right here," Elena huffed as she gave Rebekah a halfhearted glare.

"I'm very aware of that," Rebekah told Elena with a tone that said that she did not care how her words affected the doppelgänger. "It begs the question as to why you're still here."

"I was looking for Damon," Elena said, deciding to swallow any remark she had for the Original and go straight to the point.

"Not here, and neither is Stefan," said Rebekah, stepping aside and gesturing to the front door that she had left open. "Now scram. We're quite busy and we have no time to entertain any pointless shenanigans you and your friends might be up to."

Elena resisted the urge to scoff and roll her eyes in annoyance, choosing to nod before taking her leave, since getting into an argument with a girl who was a thousand times stronger than her with a fiery temper was not a good idea. The doppelgänger had no intention of testing Rebekah's patience, having had a glimpse of what the blonde was capable of while in a bad mood.

After Elena left and closed the front door behind her, Rebekah turned to Gwen and lifted the bag in her hand. "I got what you asked," she said as she handed over the bag to the young hybrid. "And let me just say that it was no easy task. The apothecaries of modern times have pills to spare but nothing original," she said with a huff.

"Well, thank you very much. I'll get right on this," Gwen said before leaving the foyer with Rebekah following behind her.

"You're very welcome," said the thousand-year-old vampire.

"If you don't mind," Gwen began as they entered the kitchen, "can you tell me why you don't like Elena?" She placed the book and bag on the island's countertop as she looked at Rebekah, who stood with her hip leaning against the island. "I mean, it's not that I like her or anything myself, but…" she paused as she cleared her throat, not knowing how to phrase her thoughts. She just wanted to get to know the vampire better and understand her perspective, and she had to start somewhere. "I don't know." The halfling shook her head. "I feel like there's more as to why you don't like her, and I was just being the curious cat." She headed to some cabinets in search of a bowl.

Rebekah sighed, "You're not wrong." Her eyes fell on her nails, looking them over for any imperfection. "It's staggering how much she looks like Tatia." She huffed as she looked around the kitchen. "I also despised that woman."

"Tatia?" Gwen frowned as she looked at Rebekah with a bowl in hand.

"Yes, the original tramp," Rebekah scoffed as she folded her arms over her chest. "Before we became what we are…" she began but paused and looked at Gwen. "You know that story, right?"

Gwen nodded, familiar with the tale about how and why the Original family became vampires. "Yeah, Nik told me about it."

"Well, before we became what we are, Nik and Elijah were in love with the same girl. While she was a kind woman and a devoted mother, I never warmed up to her, not with how she strung along both of my brothers," Rebekah said as she recalled memories from centuries past. "Their silly infatuation with a woman who couldn't decide on who to choose resulted in my brothers becoming estranged for a time, even coming to blows." She looked at Gwen. "I hated her for that." She released a sarcastic chuckle. "I never got the chance to meet her, but I hear that Katerina was no different by coming between my brothers."

"History likes to repeat itself," Gwen stated, given that Elena was also in a love triangle with two brothers who were in love with her. "Is that their thing?" she jokingly asked, hugging the bowl to her abdomen. "Having brothers fall for them?"

"Probably a love curse of some sort," Rebekah supplied. "And I may be projecting things from the past onto the doppelgänger of this era, but she seems to be walking the same path as her ancestors. She's just as fake as the rest of them." Her brows furrowed. "I mean, how hard is it to choose the person you cannot live without?"

"I completely agree. One should know who their greatest love is," Gwen supplied with a shrug of her shoulders. "And it's not that I'm making excuses, but Elena probably doesn't want to lose one by choosing the other."

Rebekah deadpanned. "Someone is still going to suffer. And it is a rather miserable life she must lead if she can't come to terms with what she feels, which wastes everyone's time and causes more pain."

"It's a good thing we don't have that problem," Gwen said as she went over to the sink, filling up the bowl with some water.

"Thank goodness for that," Rebekah breathed out a chuckle. "Are you a fellow hopeless romantic?"

"I like to think I am," Gwen chuckled and walked to the island, placing the bowl on the countertop. "I have my own love curse, Bex, and its name is Niklaus." She picked up the brown bag and took out the yarrow and arnica that were inside small plastic bags. "I highly doubt I'll be able to experience true love with the way things are now." She released a heavy exhale, her shoulders sagging in defeat. "Nik wouldn't allow it."

"You're preaching to the choir, my sweet. My brother will always have the tendency of destroying any happiness we might find without him, his paranoia and fear of being alone won't stand for such a thing to happen." Rebekah sat on a stool at the island before her eyes landed on the book Gwen had picked out to read. "What have we here?" she hummed as she grabbed the book, recognizing the title. "If it isn't Tolstoy," she sighed as she opened the book to leaf through it. "Good choice, but I hope you have no problem with tragedy. This story is no fairy tale, Weny."

"I admit that I have a preference for happy endings," Gwen said as she dropped the plants in the bowl, watching them float.

"I knew it," Rebekah said with a knowing grin.

"But I think that there is a bit of beauty in tragedy," Gwen said, but then added, "sometimes."

"I thought you'd prefer something like _Pride and Prejudice_," Rebekah remarked, placing the book down to look up at Gwen. "You're like Jane Bennet in both beauty and how you prefer to see the good in others, like you do with my brother." Her eyes narrowed on the halfling. "And much like you're doing with me. Are my assumptions correct?"

"Maybe." Gwen shrugged with a smile. "And, if you must know, _Pride and Prejudice_ is one of my favorites."

"I knew it," Rebekah chuckled.

Rebekah watched as Gwen closed her eyes and had her hands hover over the bowl. The young hybrid focused on the plants in the bowl and her hands began to glow green before small particles of light fell into the bowl, which caused the ingredients to react as the plants spun with the swirling water.

The Original vampire was amazed by what she was seeing, given that it had been a long time since she last saw faerie magic.

After Gwen opened her eyes, she looked down at the bowl where the mixed ingredients had turned into a liquid paste that was light green in color.

"What did you do?" Rebekah asked with raised eyebrows as she tried to peek into the bowl, genuinely curious as to what Gwen had done.

"I activated the healing properties of the plants with my magic and mixed them in the water to make an ointment to apply to my wounds. I could have made it to be consumed orally, but it just tastes too bad," Gwen explained, her face scrunching up when she recalled the unsettling flavor of pastes that she had made in the past. "The yarrow will help with the cut and the arnica is for the pain and bruising. With my magic, I speed up the healing process a bit." She shook the bowl a bit to move the contents, inspecting it. "I'll just apply it before taking a shower."

Rebekah hummed as she nodded, placing her chin on her right hand that was propped up with an elbow on the island's counter. "I am aware that it doesn't work on pureblood faeries but are you sure that vampire blood does nothing for _you_?" she asked, preferring to help Gwen with a faster method. She lifted her left hand and showed her wrist to the younger girl. "I have lots of it to spare."

"Nik's tried before," Gwen said, remembering the couple of times Klaus had fed her his blood in hopes that a wound would heal faster, but it never worked. "If it were a small amount, it wouldn't do anything except make me feel a bit off." She remembered the effects vampire blood had on her, as if she were coming down with the flu. "If I ingest a large amount, I get sick and throw it up."

"Oh." Rebekah pouted. "That sucks, but I guess I understand. Faerie blood is such a rare and powerful thing."

"June said that it has to do with the blood keeping itself and the faerie pure," Gwen explained. "She's still trying to understand faerie blood, so I give her a bit every now and then to let her tinker with it."

"Good to know," Rebekah exhaled. "So, let's get to know each other better."

Gwen smiled at Rebekah. "Now?"

Rebekah nodded. "How do you want to start?"

"Well," Gwen hummed, "we can start by watching movies. It's kind of a good way to bond and stuff in modern times. It also helps break the ice."

"Let's do that!" Rebekah clapped with an excited smile. "What do you recommend?"

"I love musicals and comedy and some action and romance." She laughed at Rebekah's raised eyebrow. "Okay, so I like a bit of everything, but one of my favorites is _The Princess Bride_," said Gwen, smiling. "Nik gave me both the novel and the movie as a gift for my fourth birthday." Her mind goes to said book that was safely stored in her suitcase upstairs.

Rebekah raised an eyebrow. "_The Princess Bride_?"

Gwen stared at Rebekah with furrowed brows. "Right, you've been in a coffin for ninety years or so, which means you've missed out on a lot of things, but we're going to fix that," she said as she picked up both the bowl with the paste and her book in one hand. "Let's make today a movie day."

"Movie day?" Rebekah said, grinning.

"Yes," Gwen said as she grabbed Rebekah by her wrist to pull her along behind her to lead them to her bedroom to use her laptop to watch movies. "I am going to introduce you to the wonders of motion pictures you've missed, starting with _The Princess Bride_ and a few classics."

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**End of chapter!**

**I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter. We're finally getting close to some action, so stay tuned.**

**I would love to read what you guys thought, so be not afraid to review whatever you like. I am also very happy for the love you guys show in the Follows and Faves, so I must be doing something right.**

**See you all soon in the next chapter!**


	13. smoky days

**Hello, my lovely readers! Sorry for the late delay, things have been hectic, but I soldiered on to give you all the next chapter you've been waiting for, so here it is for you all to enjoy. Also, I am very happy with the reviews, Follows, Faves and views, something I am grateful for you all and that always keeps me writing.**

**Now, review response:**

**-_xenocanaan_: I'm so happy you love Gwen, and I always try to give her a few things to show her cute and innocent side before the drama sets in. And here is another chapter that I hope you like!**

**-_FreakingLEM_: "As you wish." I _love The Princess Bride_, so I had to find some way to incorporate it into the story. I'm gonna try to try and show it a bit more in different ways.**

**-_Love . Fiction . 2020_: Thank you so much. glad you liked it!**

**-_Undercoverlikeaspy_: I'm so happy to learn that there are still fans of the original story, so I thank you ten times over for the support that I don't deserve but that I greatly appreciate. And I can't thank you enough for the love and support of this new story, so I hope that I keep up the good work.**

**-_GhostGypsy_: Glad you liked it! Also, Gwen's magic is based more on the elements, which makes it elemental, but she has other skills through it, which I will be showing as the story progresses, since I have yet to actually show her true potential.**

**-_GreenLilly_: I'm so happy that you love it! And yes, I wanted to establish some bonding between Gwen and Rebekah that makes sense and not forced for the sake of the story. Also, I am so excited to give you guys the chapter where Kol finally makes an appearance, but we need to get through Homecoming and the whole Stefan war first, but I am working hard to give you guys the meeting between my two lovebirds. Don't worry, Juniper will be back soon, but she does have a life and I want to get that sorted before delving into her any further. And I'm giving you guys a bit of the history of faeries of Mystic Falls in this chapter, but there is a lot more to tell in the future, so stay tuned for that.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing from The Vampire Diaries and claim no ownership over anything pertaining to it.**

* * *

_smoky days_

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.

.

"For the millionth time, June," Gwen chuckled as she held her phone to her ear with her shoulder, her hands busy pouring some tea into a mug with the midafternoon sun shining on her back through the kitchen windows. "Things are all right over here." Her mind went to the wound on her forehead that–thankfully–was no longer there due to the paste she had made that accelerated the healing process, having only needed a few days for the cut to completely disappear without a trace. The paste also helped clearing away any bruises or cuts that marred her skin, smoothing out any evidence of her wounds. "I'm fine and so is everything else." And that wasn't a lie, since things were fine…_presently_.

"_Are you sure?_" June asked from the other end of the line.

Gwen smiled and she could practically _see_ Juniper frowning, unconvinced. "Yes, so stop worrying. Rebekah and I have everything under control." She cleared her throat. "So, how are things in Chicago?" she asked, curious to know about the break-in. "Is the store still standing?"

"_It is, thank goodness_," Juniper said as she released a heavy breath. "_The police let me in to see if there was anything missing, and there isn't. They're still investigating with no leads as to who it could have been._"

"Do you have any idea who it could have been?" Gwen asked her friend.

"_No, but it wasn't random. Whoever broke in was looking for something,_" Juniper sighed, a bit stressed with the situation she found herself in. "_I'll need to wait until the police finishes gathering evidence to get a better look around the place. I also need to start getting everything ready to sell the place._"

"You'll call if there's anything I can do," said Gwen. "I can even get Nik to help."

"_Not necessary for now, but thanks. It's going to be a while before I have everything sorted and meet up with you guys_," Juniper began to explain before she chuckled. "_It's going to be odd no longer being tied down somewhere after so many years getting by on my own, but I'm looking forward to some excitement._" She exhaled deeply. "_I owe a lot to Missus Bixby for taking me in, so making sure she's comfortable for what remains of her life with the money I'll get by selling the store is the least I can do for her. Granted, I also have to be prepared if she doesn't want to sell, which would mean that we'll have to work out what would need to be done if that were the case._"

"From what you've told me, she's a very sweet woman," said Gwen. "It'll all be all right."

Juniper chuckled. "_Ever the optimist._"

"Someone has to be," countered Gwen. "Besides, I can't wait to see you."

"_Oh, you're so sweet,_" Juniper cooed. "_So, the resident gang of misfits hasn't been giving you any trouble?_" she asked.

"None whatsoever," Gwen responded as she dipped the tea bag a few times into the mug filled with steaming water. She dropped the tea bag in the mug, along with a cinnamon stick. "It's been pretty quiet, but that isn't actually a good thing." She picked up her mug in her left hand and held the phone to her ear with the other before she began to make her way to the library, glad that there was no one else in the house, which had been the norm for the past few days–not that she was complaining.

Humming, Juniper said with her voice filled with worry, "_You're right about that, so just stay alert_." The witch wasn't known for sitting still, so being too many miles away and unable to provide any support did nothing to calm her nerves. "_Has Klaus contacted you guys?_" she asked. "_I imagine he has a decent number of werewolves-turned-hybrids at his beck and call by now_."

"I have no doubt that he's turned quite a few werewolves with whatever amount of the doppelgänger's blood he took with him," Gwen answered as she sat on an armchair in the library with her legs curled up beneath her, making herself comfortable in the room she felt most serene, now balancing her mug on her thigh. "The last time I talked to him was yesterday, but it was brief," she said, taking a sip of her warm tea as she recalled her conversation with Klaus the other day. Once he had assured that she was safe under Rebekah's watch so far, the Original hybrid had provided few details about what he was doing before hanging up in his haste to deal with some werewolves he was turning. "But he did mention that he was coming back to Mystic Falls after finding one more pack of werewolves to turn."

"_Such a greedy man_," Juniper huffed. "_He should be careful not to push his luck. Word will spread and what he's doing won't give him any points in the werewolf community_."

"I can imagine," said Gwen, knowing that Klaus was infamous for a reason. "Can you blame him? If Mikael is running around somewhere after so many years of nothing more than a passing thought, then it shouldn't be a surprise that Nick's paranoia is way past going through the roof." The fact that Klaus was so scared of someone had Gwen curious as to what such a person looked like if they made an invincible immortal run in fear, but the thought came and went as she realized that it was best not to put a face to a man who hunted down his own flesh and blood. "I'm worried about him," she sighed.

"_I'm sure he's fine. I may have a bit of a taxing relationship with him, but I admit that he is quite resourceful, so he'll be fin_," Juniper assured the young girl. "_Don't tell him I told you that. I wouldn't hear the end of it._"

Gwen chuckled as she took another sip of her tea. "You know, he hasn't said it out loud, but I think he likes you a bit, even though he might still find you annoying and thinks of ways to kill you every now and then."

Juniper laughed. "_That's good to hear, but the reason I am not dead at his hand is because of you. He cares about you too much to cause you any more grief than he already does._"

"He's a big softy every now and then," Gwen said with a small laugh.

"_Softy?_" Juniper snorted. "_There are many words that can describe Klaus, but I never thought that I would hear someone describe him as a 'big softy'._" She paused. "_But, when it comes to you, he does a one-eighty, so I can see that happening._"

With a smile on her lips, Gwen hummed. "Maybe." She heard the echo of a door opening and closing, signaling someone's return to the boarding house, which had the young girl's shoulders tense up as she held her breath. "Someone just got back."

"_Who?_" asked Juniper, intrigued.

Gwen stayed quiet as she waited for whoever arrived to make an appearance, hearing footsteps getting closer to the library. She hoped that it was Rebekah and not either of the Salvatore brothers or any other person who seemed to know that the house was always left unlocked, and her prayers were heard when she saw the blonde Original vampire enter the library with a distressed look on her face as her eyes zeroed in on Gwen, prompting the latter's brows to furrow with concern before she asked, "Bex?"

"_Rebekah?_" Juniper asked. "_How's she doing at school?_"

"It's quite eventful," Rebekah said with a bit of edge to her voice, having heard Juniper through her enhanced hearing. She locked eyes with Gwen as she approached the young girl. "Now, I would love to catch up, but I need some help with a bit of homework." She gave Gwen a pointed look that had the young hybrid curious as to what could have caused such a look of worry to appear on the Originals' face.

"Okay," Gwen told Rebekah with a nod before she addressed Juniper. "I'm going to have to call you back, June. Bekah needs help with something."

"_All right. Go hit the books or whatever,_" said Juniper. "_I'm just going to enjoy the rest of the day at a police station. Call if you guys need anything._"

"We will. Bye," Gwen said and hung up the call before she looked up at Rebekah with eyes frowning in concern, leaving her phone on the coffee table. "What happened?"

Rebekah sat on the couch next to the armchair Gwen was sitting on. "We have a problem."

Gwen released a weary sigh. "I already told you that the red dress was the best one. You can't tell me you got more to choose from." She recalled how Rebekah had bought–or compelled–for herself too many dresses the day before. She spent the entire day helping the Original choose a dress for the Homecoming Dance, not having realized how picky the blonde could be, but Gwen did understand that this was a very important event for Rebekah. And the young half-breed would be lying if she said she wasn't looking forward to it as well. "And I already picked mine, so forget about me doing a runway show for you again," she quickly added, not wanting to pose any more dresses than she already did when she had picked out her own after the first five she surveyed.

"No, no," Rebekah sighed with a slight roll of her eyes. "I trust your judgment and I approve your dress." Gwen raised an eyebrow at this, but the vampire waved her off with her hand. "Look, that bloody wench of a doppelgänger approached me at school today with rather disturbing news."

"Really?" Gwen frowned as she leaned back against her cushioned seat, holding her cup to her lips. "What did she want?"

"She confirmed that her little gang of imbeciles do have Mikael and plan to wake him," Rebekah said, her eyes wide with panic as her right leg bounced. Her entire body was on edge as the face of her father appeared in her mind, which made her sick to her stomach.

Gwen choked on her tea as her mind processed what Rebekah had just said, so she pulled her mug away from her lips and placed it on the coffee table as she coughed a few times to clear her throat. She wiped her mouth with the loose sleeve of her lilac sweater before directing her frown at Rebekah, her heart missing a beat at the name that had Klaus skipping town. "What happened?" she asked with urgency as she planted her feet on the floor, turning her straightened body to completely face the vampire. "What did she say?"

"The stuck-up bitch thinks she knows better, speaking about waking my father as if he will be their savior," Rebekah fumed as she stood up from the couch to walk around the coffee table to pace in front of the fireplace with Gwen's eyes following her movements. "I just want to wring her little neck and tear out the hearts of her blasted posse," she seethed, wringing her own hands in her anxiety.

"I don't understand. There's been no news about Mikael for years," said Gwen, feeling thrown off by the revelation. "Nik told me that it's as if he disappeared from the face of the earth. I find it hard to believe that these people were just that lucky to have found him."

"She said something about him rotting in an old cemetery in Charlotte," Rebekah recounted, trying to remember everything that Elena had told her earlier at school during her cheerleading practice. "That they'll wake him."

Gwen raised her eyebrows. "Wait," she said, causing Rebekah to pause in her pacing. "They haven't woken him?"

Rebekah shook her head. "No," she answered. "She said that she wanted a reason not to."

"That doesn't make any sense," Gwen said with a slight shake of her head, finding it odd that the people who want Klaus dead haven't unleashed the one person who could make their wishes come true. "Did she say anything else?"

"A bit too interested to know about my family after showing me some carvings we made a thousand years ago," Rebekah huffed, her arms folded over her chest.

"Carvings?" asked Gwen.

Rebekah nodded. "My family lived here in Mystic Falls after we left the Old World."

"Really?" asked Gwen, surprised by this. Klaus had told her a bit about his mortal life and how he and his family were turned into vampires, but she never dared to ask more due to the pain she always saw in his eyes. He only ever talked about his past when he was in the mood and only bits and pieces. "This town seems to be the center of a lot of supernatural history."

"Yes," Rebekah said, a bit offhandedly in her daze. "And it appears they found the cave that was regularly used to carve the everyday event, but it's all written in runic, so it'll take them a while to figure it out." Her shoulders sagged with a heavy exhale. "I think she wants me to make it easier for her."

"Why would they waste time trying to figure out what happened a thousand years ago?" Gwen asked herself, now being able to connect a few dots as she slumped back against her seat. "They don't know what to do."

"What do you mean?" asked Rebekah, raising an eyebrow.

"It's just that they're scurrying about, as if Mikael wasn't what they wanted," Gwen said as she looked up at Rebekah. The young fae simply found that nothing about what Elena told Rebekah made sense, not when she imagined that they would have unleashed Mikael as soon as they found him to get rid of Klaus. "And I also don't get why they want to learn more about your family."

"Well, she wasn't lying about Mikael and this cemetery he's supposed to be in," Rebekah countered, having failed to detect any falsehood in Elena when they spoke to each other. "Also, what she said would explain my father's absence in the last few years."

Gwen nodded with a hum. "I'm not saying that she lied, but it's a bit odd that they have the means to kill Nik but refrain from doing anything."

Rebekah had to pause at this, her mouth hanging open as she thought about how true Gwen's words were. She calmed down a bit. If Mikael had been awakened and had been told about Klaus and her own whereabouts, she would have known by now. "Still, we don't really know much of anything, so we're at a disadvantage."

"But they don't know something," Gwen argued. "Otherwise, they wouldn't be looking into your past and that of your family."

"That is true," Rebekah agreed.

"Why don't we give an inch, but get a mile out of her?" Gwen suggested. She elaborated when she received a perplexed look from Rebekah. "We should invite her over, see what she knows and what she wants. That way, we also get some information out of her and go from there."

Rebekah's lips finally broke out of the thin line they were in and turned into a grin. "And here I thought that you were just a nice girl."

Gwen shrugged with a small smile. "I don't see the harm engaging in a little 'mean girl' power struggle."

.

As his eyes shifted from picture to picture, Alaric felt the prickling sensation of a headache beginning to take root in the back of his head, prompting him to rub his hand over his face to clear his vision from any haziness or dizziness. He cleared his throat and blinked a few times before his attention went back to the pictures spread out over his kitchen's island's counter as he worked to label them all. While he had named a few of the carvings he took pictures of with post-it notes, it didn't help that he made a mess in his apartment with all of it. There was progress, but it was slow. He was able to identify the characters of the story the cavern walls had written on them, which would then help him start figuring out what was being told.

At a knock on his front door, the history teacher looked away from the photos and turned to face the door, calling out, "It's open!"

Bonnie opened the door, stepping inside the apartment before closing the door behind her. "Hey," she greeted with a smile.

"Hey, Bonnie," Alaric greeted with a kind smile of his own.

"Got your message," Bonnie said as she approached him, her brows furrowing with curiosity when she found the many pictures of the cave that she had been to piled on the dining table and any other surface in the apartment.

"Yeah, uh, sorry the place is such a mess," Alaric said with a sheepish look as he gestured to his home and how disorganized it all was, not just because of the pictures but also because of the training gear he got out for Elena and the equipment he used to take photos of the cave. "I'm a bit obsessed," he chuckled, a bit embarrassed to show that he was fascinated by their discovery, which showed the historian within him.

"I can see that." Bonnie nodded as she looked around before reaching into her purse and pulling out Elena's necklace, which she presented to Alaric. It worried her how the item had not been destroyed with the combination of her magic and that of her grandmother, which had her thinking that there was a lot of power in the small pendant. "I brought the necklace that wouldn't die."

Alaric hummed as he grabbed the necklace, inspecting it. "That's great." He looked up at Bonnie and noticed how the small smile she mustered was a forced one, reminding him of what Elena told him that transpired the night the ghosts had materialized. "You okay?" he asked the young witch.

Bonnie pursed her lips. "Been better," she sighed, still unable to talk about what he was referring to.

"Listen," Alaric began as his fingers played with the necklace's chain, "Jeremy is an idiot. And I know this with certainty because I was once a 'Jeremy'." He gave the teenager what he hoped was an encouraging smile, which she reciprocated. "Trust me, we learn…eventually."

"So," Bonnie breathed, wanting to change the subject. It wasn't that she wasn't grateful for Alaric's words, but she would rather not think about her relationship with Jeremy and how he chose another girl over her, having thought that he would be the one to never hurt her in such a way. "Need any help?" she asked, wanting to take her mind off her personal problems.

"Actually," Alaric said as he picked up a photo and showed it to Bonnie. "I've been staring at this image all day, wondering why it looked so familiar." He held up Elena's necklace that was twisted around his fingers next to the photo held by his other hand, and Bonnie could see that there was too much of a resemblance between the carving and the necklace to be a coincidence. "I was right."

"It's the same design," said Bonnie, nodding.

"Your grandmother said this necklace belonged to the witch that put the hybrid curse on Klaus, right?" Alaric asked her, receiving a nod of confirmation. "Well, this symbol is repeated all across the wall," he said as he dropped the photo and necklace on the kitchen island while gesturing to the other photographs. "I've been trying to figure out what it meant." He picked out another post-it, writing a word on it with a Sharpie pen. "And now I know." He put away the pen and stuck the post-it on the picture that had the same design as Elena's necklace, showing Bonnie that it stood for 'witch'.

Bonnie frowned as she realized something. "Grams mentioned something about the witch that had messed with the gateway to the Other Side, making me think that this witch is connected to the Originals."

"Probably from centuries ago," Alaric said as he shook the photo before dropping it by the other pictures he had already labeled and picking up another that Bonnie recognized. "This one is also all over the place, if not more." He stared at the photo in his hand that showed the carving of a star with seven points.

"Yeah," Bonnie said, remembering how this had been the symbol she touched when she went to the cave, which resulted in her witnessing the strange vision she deducted was from a long time ago. "The one made with faerie blood."

Alaric nodded and wrote 'faerie' on another post-it before sticking it to the picture. "My thoughts exactly."

"Have you been able to find out anything about them?" Bonnie asked him, feeling a bit ridiculous for saying 'faerie' and not think about the popular Disney character, which takes away all seriousness from the situation.

"I tried to do some research, but there's too much data," Alaric explained. "There are too many mythologies around the world, and it doesn't help that the first thing that pops up is Tinkerbell." This had Bonnie chuckling, imagining how frustrated Alaric must've been during his research. "I thought that your grandmother might have had something about them hidden away in her things."

"I looked around, but there's not much," said Bonnie, since she did search through her grandmother's belongings for anything about the mystical being. "All she knew and wrote about was that faeries are old, _very_ old. They're like the oldest creatures on this planet and probably the center of magic itself, and that they were the ones who introduced magic to humans."

Raising an inquiring eyebrow, Alaric asked, "They taught humans magic? As in, they made people witches?"

"It's all I could find in Grams' notes, but yeah," Bonnie told him. "Thing is that their species became too afraid and secretive to share anything they knew with anyone after they began being hunted down, so it was impossible to learn about them."

"Now they're extinct," Alaric sighed.

"It's sad, you know," said Bonnie. "Grams described them as pure beings with a harmonious relationship with Nature, but they were targeted by everyone." She frowned with tight lips, put off by the behavior of other witches toward faeries. "I understand why vampires killed them, but I don't understand how witches could do them any harm when they were also connected to Nature."

"It goes to show that there's good and evil in everyone," said Alaric.

Bonnie nodded, but she wasn't at all reassured. "Yeah."

.

Gwen hummed a tune as she fiddled with the stereo on a desk placed in a corner of the room with a surround system. It had gotten too quiet for her as she and Rebekah waited for Elena to arrive at the boarding house, so she decided that listening to a bit of music would do them and their nerves some good. Out of all of the CDs she saw neatly stacked around the stereo, she chose Bon Jovi's _Slippery When Wet_, which was one of the many other of Bon Jovi's albums that she saw, which had her thinking that one or both of the Salvatore brothers was a fan of the iconic rock band. After inserting the disc and making sure the volume wouldn't destroy their hearing, Gwen went about pulling open every curtain in the room as "Let It Rock" began to play in the background.

Rebekah entered the room, her eyes finding Gwen's. "Now _that_ is better music." Her head bobbed with the song, liking the tune and the singer's voice.

"I thought we should lighten up the place a bit," Gwen explained, humming along with the song's lyrics.

"You think she'll come?" Rebekah asked, sitting on the couch in the parlor room as she slumped back into the cushions, staring at the screen of her phone that displayed the text she had sent Elena to meet up at the Salvatores' home half an hour ago. She was getting impatient with having to wait for the doppelgänger, already abhorring the thought of spending time with the brunette. "Although, I would prefer if she didn't. I don't know if I will be able to keep myself from squeezing that thin neck of hers." She huffed, "You should have seen how smart she thought she was when she threatened me with Mikael. She was lucky that we were at school." She became so angry when she was threatened.

Gwen raised an eyebrow at Rebekah as she sat beside the vampire after finishing her task with the curtains to allow the afternoon sunlight to filter in, having gotten annoyed with how dark and gloomy the place was. "I know you don't like her, and I don't expect you to start after today, but we're on a mission."

"I know," Rebekah huffed as she turned off her phone. "I need a little pick-me-up," she stood up to serve herself a glass of bourbon, since there was some in a glass bottle on a table behind the couch. While she wasn't a fan of the Salvatore brothers at the moment, she was grateful to them for having something to drink in almost every room.

"Look," Gwen began as Rebekah came to stand in front of her with a glass filled with the amber liquid. "All we have to do is find out what she knows about Mikael."

"That's another thing that worries me," said Rebekah, taking a generous sip of her drink. She scoffed as anger surged through her body. "Why couldn't he just stay decayed in whatever hole he was in for the rest of eternity. It's not like he's missed, let alone beloved."

Having noticed the slight tremble in the blonde's voice and how her hand that held her drink shook, Gwen knew that fear seemed to overwhelm Rebekah when confronted with anything that had to do with her father, and she couldn't be blamed. Also, the young halfling's plan only went as far as figuring out what Elena knew about Mikael. She had to think about what to do next, but she figured that she would do that after getting whatever information the mortal doppelgänger had to offer. Still, she imagined that she would simply call Klaus and let him think of a plan, should one be necessary.

"Oh," Rebekah spoke up when her ears picked up on a car's engine, causing Gwen to perk up and straighten her back as she looked up at the Original vampire. "I believe our guest has finally deigned to grace us with her presence."

"Okay," Gwen said while taking a deep breath, giving Rebekah a pointed look. "Remember, try to be nice. We'll throw her out as soon as we get what we want."

Rebekah rolled her eyes as she mumbled into her drink, "Whatever." And then she finished the rest of her drink in one last gulp, enjoying how the liquid warmed her up on its way down to her stomach.

The front door opened and closed, revealing Elena striding into the foyer as she looked around, coming to a stop when her eyes landed on Gwen and Rebekah. While it was no surprise that Gwen was there, Elena had thought that Rebekah wanted to talk to her alone. And it was now that she realized that she should have been aiming to talk to Gwen first and figure out what she knew before going to Rebekah, since the halfling was less of a threat to her life.

"Hello, Elena," Gwen greeted with a small smile, leaning back against the couch.

Rebekah's greeting was a huff under her breath as she walked over to the bourbon to fill her glass once more.

"I was invited over," Elena announced with a shrug of her shoulders, "to talk."

"Yes, unfortunately," Rebekah sighed into her drink as she looked up at Elena, taking a sip of her drink. She gestured to her own drink. "Want some?"

"I'm not here to drink," Elena almost scoffed, a bit impatient with wanting to know more about the Originals, which she hoped would help her and her friends figure out how to kill Klaus if they knew how they were turned into vampires.

"Then, what do you want to talk about?" Gwen asked, her eyes narrowing.

"I'm here to talk about why you don't want me to wake up Mikael," Elena said matter-of-factly.

Gwen nodded and asked, "Okay, then how about you tell us why you haven't woken him?"

Elena frowned at Gwen, feigning confusion as she gulped down any nervousness. "What?"

"Well, you say you have him but haven't woken him, which is what I don't understand, since he would solve whatever conflict you have with Nik," Gwen stated, keeping her eyes on Elena. "So, why haven't you woken him?"

"I'm not stupid," Elena argued, keeping her voice steady and her head held up high to appear confident. "I wouldn't be so careless to wake up another Original with a not-so-stellar reputation on a whim. I want to know more about him and see if he can be reasoned with before a decision is made." She glanced at Rebekah with a bored expression. "If you're not willing to share, then I'll just take my chances with Mikael and bring him here, see what he has to say that you don't."

In her mind, Elena saw her bluff getting a different result than her being shaved hard against a wall by the neck with Rebekah's face morphing into vampiric features for a few seconds in her anger. The doppelgänger gasped for breath as the Original's grasp on her throat tightened and her back exploded with a sharp pain. The brunette mortal tried to claw the vampire's hand off her neck to no avail while wheezing, but Rebekah still held an impassive look on her face as her left hand kept a relaxed hold on her drink.

"Rebekah!" Gwen gasped as she jumped off the couch and ran over to the Original's side, glancing at the choking Elena before her eyes settled on the blonde. "Let her go, Bekah," she demanded.

"Why?" Rebekah scoffed with a smirk, her eyes roaming over Elena's face that displayed nothing but fear. "We kill her, we solve our Mikael problem, since she seems to be the ringleader with everyone eating out of her hand. This will also get everyone else off our and Nik's backs. Then, we can get on with our lives."

"You can't," Gwen insisted.

Rebekah turned to her right and matched Gwen's frown with her own. "And why not?"

"I don't want you to be daggered for another ninety years, that's why," Gwen explained with her swept bangs falling over her left eye. "Think about what Nik will do when he finds out."

The centuries-old vampire could see the agitation in Gwen's hazel eyes, which was born out of worry for the blonde, something that surprised Rebekah, given that she could not remember when someone was this concerned for her–_truly_ concerned. There were too many years to count and too many people to remember, but Rebekah couldn't recall anyone outside of her brothers who would have fought or even made an attempt to keep a dagger out of her heart. And while she would have enjoyed squeezing the life out of Elena, the vampire realized that Gwen was right. Killing the doppelgänger would only anger her brother and most likely land her inside of a coffin with a dagger in her chest for an indefinite amount of time.

After taking a deep breath to calm the fire in her blood, Rebekah turned back to face Elena and loosened her tight grasp on the brunette's neck, watching as the doppelgänger greedily sucked in precious air back into her lungs. Rebekah inched her face closer to the brunette's frightened one until their noses were inches away from one another, her quiet but cold voice telling Elena, "You _do not_ threaten me." While Elena's face was devoid of any emotion, her heart was beating too fast as she recognized the darkness in the blonde's eyes that told her that she shouldn't push her luck. "You'll learn what I allow you to learn, and you'll tell us what we want to know." Her eyes lost their ferocity as she pulled away from Elena with a raised eyebrow. "Now, isn't that a fair trade?"

Elena's neck had enough room to allow her to nod before she was released. If it wasn't because she had been pushed against a wall that she used to support herself with, Elena would have crumbled to the floor due to how wobbly her legs were. She coughed a few times to test her tender throat as she reached up to her neck, knowing that a bruise would form later and that she would have to explain it to Damon, already dreading that conversation and the overprotectiveness that would surely follow. Her eyes then watched as Rebekah made her way to the stairs, leaving her glass on a table on the way after downing its contents.

"Honestly," Gwen huffed as she scowled at Elena. "What were you hoping to gain by bullying her like that?" At Elena's silence, the halfling rolled her eyes in annoyance. "Take it from me, the _last thing_ you ever want to do is threaten an Original, no matter which one. And trust me, she would have killed you, so you're very welcome." She then left the doppelgänger to follow Rebekah up the stairs.

Elena exhaled a weary breath as she collected herself, coming to terms with the fact that her previous plan to manipulate Rebekah into giving her information was not going to work. It also didn't help that she now had to put up the farce that they had Mikael when they actually didn't know where he disappeared to with a way to kill Klaus, especially when Gwen was too observant for her liking and already appeared to see right through her. Still, she was not going to back down, not when there could be another way to get rid of Klaus. And so, she steeled herself and forced her legs to carry her up the stairs, following the sound of drawers being opened and closed that led her to the last room she wanted to be in.

"How fun is this?" Rebekah chuckled as she looked into the drawers of a dresser in Stefan's room, her eyes scrutinizing the youngest Salvatore's fashion sense.

"Really?" Gwen asked from where she sat on the edge of Stefan's bed, her legs crisscrossed.

Rebekah glanced at Gwen with a pout. "Oh, you won't resist doing the same after you get yourself a boyfriend, which we will need to work on for Homecoming."

"I am fine going on my own, Bex," Gwen told her friend.

"Nonsense. You need a date," said Rebekah, rummaging through a drawer. "I would suggest one of my brothers, but that's out of the question."

Elena leaned against the doorway with her arms crossed over her chest, her body stiff and uncomfortable as she sighed, "We shouldn't be here." While the room had once been like a haven of hers and Stefan, she now felt like a stranger with her skin crawling, feeling like she was invading her former significant other's privacy. And this saddened her heart, disliking how a weight had settled in her chest while being in a place that held nothing but good memories of her time with Stefan.

"'Course we should!" Rebekah argued, sending Elena an unimpressed look. "Come on, like you've never wanted to snoop." She picked out a gray underwear before holding it up for the other two girls to see. "Boxer briefs," she stated before she bundled it up and placed it back in the drawer. "A lot has changed since the twenties."

Elena wanted to scoff in distaste but held herself back, opting to ask, "Are you gonna root through his stuff all night or are you gonna start to tell me your story?" She was getting annoyed that it was Rebekah looking into Stefan's things without a care in the world. She recognized that her annoyance was mostly due to jealousy, but she pushed it back.

Rebekah sighed as she made her way to a desk near the window. "You really are no fun, which makes this boring." She glanced at Gwen, who was looking over a book she found on the nightstand that was titled _Moby Dick_. "How do you suppose we should go about making this more fun, Weny?"

Gwen looked up from reading the book's summary, her eyes shifting from Rebekah to Elena. "I don't know," she hummed as she thought about a way to get her own answers, placing the book on the bed next to her. "Someone can ask a question. After the answer is given, the other person gets a turn and must get an honest answer." She shared a knowing look with Rebekah, both knowing that it didn't matter if Elena lied, since the vampire would be able to sense any deception.

"What if someone lies?" asked Elena, not liking where this was all headed.

"Well," Rebekah began and gestured to Gwen, "Weny can't lie, so just ask her for confirmation. Nik's told her enough about my family to know what is true or not."

That was partially true. Klaus had spoken about his family before, but he didn't really get into detail when telling Gwen a few things about his past, and Rebekah knew this. This was only a way to give Elena false reassurance, but it also allowed Gwen to twist her words whenever it was needed to steer clear from being forced to tell the truth.

"Guests go first," Gwen told Elena.

"Well, Elijah said that your father was a landowner in Europe," Elena began as she took a step into the room, watching Rebekah sifting through the things on Stefan's desk. "How did you guys end up here?"

"My parents had just started a family when a plague struck their homeland," Rebekah answered as she picked up a few papers she fleetingly read, finding out that they were research papers from school. "They lost a child to it. They wanted to escape and protect their future family from the same fate." She glanced at Elena. "Our turn. Where did you say you found Mikael?"

"In a cemetery in Charlotte, North Carolina," said Elena before she quickly asked, "So, how did you end up here? This part of the world hadn't even been discovered yet, right?"

Rebekah let out a small laugh as she looked at Elena. "Not by anyone in your history books." She put down the papers back where she found them. "But my mother knew the witch Ayana, who heard from the spirits that nomadic faeries had made their home on a mystical land imbued with their magic, making everything flourish and pure, which led my family here, where we lived amongst the faeries and people blessed by the gifts of speed and strength."

Gwen grew curious about this, given that Klaus never mentioned it before. "Gifts?"

"Werewolves," Rebekah clarified. "They were our neighbors. My family lived in peace with them, as well as with faeries and natives for over twenty years, during which time my family had more children, including me."

"You make it sound so normal," Elena remarked.

Rebekah had a wistful smile on her lips while recalling memories of a distant past as she came to stand by the window, watching as the sun began its descent behind the horizon. "It was, only that once a month our family retreated into caves beneath our village imbued with faerie magic to keep us safe. The wolves would howl through the night as they ran alongside the faeries, and then we'd return home by morning."

"Faeries and werewolves?" Gwen asked Rebekah with furrowed brows.

"Witches use faeries. Vampires eat faeries," said Rebekah. "Werewolves accompany faeries, since they were somehow connected to Nature in a more symbiotic way." She shook her head. "I have no idea how to explain it." Her smile turned sour as she remembered what had marked a turning point for her family. "One full moon, Klaus and my youngest brother Henrik snuck out to watch the men turn into beasts." While that wound on her heart had already scabbed, there was still a dull throb of pain whenever she thought about her younger sibling. "That was forbidden, and Henrik paid the price. There was no magic that could save him, not even that from the faeries." She could still hear her mother's wails and the grief that had struck her family, almost crippling them all. "And that was the beginning of the end of peace with our all of our neighbors," she said, turning to face Elena with a blank stare. "And one of the last moments my family had together as humans."

Silence engulfed the room, so Gwen broke it by clearing her throat and turning her attention to Elena. "Now, what happened to Mikael that he ended up in a cemetery?"

Elena shrugged. "We don't know yet. He was in chains and desiccated in a tomb."

Any other question that was going to be asked was forgotten when the vibrating sound of a phone filled the room, which had Elena reaching into her pocket in search for it.

"You better get that," Rebekah sighed, now realizing that her eyes had watered, which she had failed to notice while going down memory lane. "That'll be Damon checking up on you, I imagine."

Elena looked at the caller ID and saw that it was indeed Damon, so she turned her back on Rebekah and Gwen to answer the phone and speak with the oldest Salvatore, allowing the other two girls some time for themselves.

Rebekah picked up a book from Stefan's desk and opened it to find that it was one of his diaries, something that intrigued her as she made her way to the bed. "Now this is interesting," she said as she lied down on her stomach next Gwen, her eyes skimming over the words written on the white pages.

Gwen turned to her side to get a better view of Rebekah. "You okay?" she asked, having noticed the vampire's change in demeanor.

"Yes, I am," Rebekah exhaled heavily, her eyes focused on the diary to try and avoid showing any vulnerability, having noticed how Gwen picked up on people's emotions rather well. Still, she wanted to be honest with the half-fae and open up, if only little by little. "It's just been a while since I thought about my origins. It's kind of hard to stop talking about it once I start, being swept up by the dreary memories."

"I hope there were some good memories worth remembering," said Gwen, wanting to know more about the blonde's past, which included knowing more about things that Klaus neglected to share. So far, she had already heard about what Rebekah had mentioned, except for the part where faeries lived with werewolves a thousand years ago.

Rebekah smiled up at Gwen. "Sparse, but they were wonderful." She chuckled as she remembered how she used to play in the woods with her siblings. "The best ones were with my siblings. My parents weren't always good to us, but I did see them try to do their best every now and then."

"Did you know any faeries?" asked Gwen.

"Of course," said Rebekah as she put down the diary for a moment, keeping it open on a page she was interested to read. "My mother became good friends with a widowed faerie called Linah who had two daughters around my age. Lilith was the oldest of the two with a rebellious nature and a compassionate heart, whereas Lilwen was kind and selfless. Their home was close to our own, so we became fast friends," she paused and snorted. "My brother also became friends with them, if only for another reason."

"What do you mean?" asked Gwen.

"My brother Kol had a thing with both, but not two-timing. It was more like he was oblivious," Rebekah explained. "Lilith was his best friend. She was in love with him to the point of obsession, but he was madly in love with Lilwen and she was madly in love with him, but they took their time with the confession of such feelings. It caused a bit of tension for all of us for some time, since the sisters were good friends of mine and my siblings."

Gwen was hesitant to ask, but she did. "What happened to them?"

Rebekah sighed with a dull smile. "They died."

Just as Gwen opened her mouth to ask Rebekah to elaborate, Elena's voice rose as she yelled, "Damon!" She wanted to do more than yell. "How could you let him out?"

"Trouble in paradise?" Gwen asked Rebekah, whispering.

Rebekah grinned as she picked up the diary once more. "I think paradise just got too small for two Salvatore brothers."

* * *

**End of the chapter!**

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	14. of ancient times

**Hello, my sweet and awesome readers! I hope you are all doing all right and keeping it safe. I bring to you guys the next chapter that will close the whole trip to the past of the Originals. While it does stay close to what happened in the episodes, there are a lot of details and changes that are important to my story, so stay alert.**

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* * *

_of ancient memory_

.

.

.

"Anything interesting in there?" Gwen asked Rebekah as she stood up from Stefan's bed to stretch her limbs. "I mean, there aren't many vampires who keep stock of what they do over the centuries, right?"

"Same old Stefan," Rebekah whispered to herself with a sigh from where she still lied on the bed on her stomach, her legs that were bent at the knees swinging front and back.

The Original vampire was bored with the endless self-loathing her former lover kept writing about and how gloomy his descriptions became the more she read as he returned to what she referred to as the _vegetarian_ diet for vampires. This was not the Stefan she was used to. The Stefan she knew thrived in his bloodlust without any remorse for whoever's life he took to satiate himself, enjoying how it made him feel so invigorating as he let himself be drunk with blood. Still, she was familiar with the other side of him when he let slip a few things, something she recognized as specks of his humanity shining through the creature of the night he was turned into.

"And no." Rebekah told Gwen, answering the halfling's question. "Vampires don't tend to write about their everyday lives on a little diary, not when we can simply recall a date and perfectly remember everything." She glanced up at Gwen. "Another perk of being a vampire is how our brains function better and we can better remember things, so this," she said as she closed the diary and presented it to the half-fae, "is not a common thing."

"Did you get your fill of snooping yet?" asked an annoyed Elena after she finished her call with Damon. She sat down on a chair that was next to a round table and leaned back against her seat, getting bothered with Rebekah for going through Stefan's things. Her question had drawn the attention of both girls in front of her. "Can we get on with the story?"

Gwen looked down at Rebekah with her arms crossed over her chest. "It is her turn."

"Still, no need for impatience. I don't feel like we're in any hurry," Rebekah huffed as she threw the diary on the bed before getting up on her feet that carried her over to Elena. She was about to ask the teenage brunette what her next question was, but then her eye caught something that irked her a bit that was lying among other things on the table Elena sat next to. Her hand reached out for a picture frame and frowned at the image of Stefan and Elena together, both smiling as they held one another. "Honestly, I don't get you two as a couple," she spoke her thoughts out loud, shifting her eyes from the picture to look down at Elena.

Gwen had to disagree with Rebekah on that, but only because she could _see_ the love between Stefan and Elena that was quite palpable. She saw it in the way he wanted to protect the doppelgänger from Klaus at all costs, even if he had to give up his life for her. And yet, Gwen also had to admit that the doppelgänger was handling the situation with Stefan the wrong way. From what she could remember about the interactions between the former couple, their love was true, but the half-fae found that it barely scratched the surface of what she would describe as an _epic love_. Now that she thought about it, the young hybrid shouldn't really judge too much when she had yet to actually experience any form of real romantic love and not just puppy love or crushes. Still, the halfling couldn't help but feel a bit envious of Elena for having someone who loved her at such lengths, making the halfling wonder if she would ever find a partner who'd be prepared to go to such lengths for her

Of course, Gwen was going to keep these to herself, since Rebekah was the ex-girlfriend meeting the most recent girlfriend who also sported the face of someone the blonde despised and Gwen didn't want to be on the Original's bad side.

"Why would you?" Elena gave Rebekah an unimpressed glare, shrugging her shoulders nonchalantly. "You don't know anything about who he really is."

Gwen stared at the back of Rebekah's head, becoming nervous about the blonde's temper when Elena spoke to her in such a condescending way. "Bex," she warned, her voice tearing Elena from her raging emotions and reminding her that the Original towering over her had no qualms about ending her life. "Deep breaths."

Rebekah gave Elena a smile too sickly sweet as she carelessly dropped the picture on the table. "No, little girl, it is _you_ who can't seem to grasp who he really is," she said, a bit too calm for Elena's liking. "If you think humans have layers and sides to them, imagine what that would mean for a vampire. He has sides and parts of his life you don't even know exist." She huffed with a smile when Elena dropped her gaze. "You only know the man he wishes to be and only that man. I know the man he is terrified to embrace, the man he wishes he could control, the man who is vulnerable and many more. So, don't get snippy with me because he didn't seem to trust you enough to share those other sides with you." She then grinned. "At least he didn't go after me because I was the spitting image of an ex-girlfriend."

Elena took a deep and calming breath to keep herself from lashing out by punching the smugness from Rebekah's face, needing to take control of the situation. "You're just looking for someone to push around," she said as she stood up from the chair to match Rebekah's unwavering stare. "Find someone else to play with, maybe you can compel yourself a friend." She went to leave, hoping her bluff would work.

Rebekah chuckled. "Already got one who is not whiny or bratty…much." She looked over her shoulder to catch Gwen's eyes. "I think I could do with a drink or a snack. What about you, Weny?"

"Whiny or bratty, huh?" Gwen gave Rebekah a halfhearted glare.

"I'm sorry?" Rebekah grinned with her eyes big and innocent.

"You're lucky I like you. Maybe you can tell me about the necklace," Gwen said as she left the room with Rebekah, leaving behind a confused Elena. "She needs a lesson or two from Regina George," she mumbled to the blonde as they went down the stairs, their destination being the kitchen.

"I can do a better Regina George," Rebekah scoffed, recalling the character she liked in the movie she watched the day before with Gwen.

"You think she'll follow?" asked the hybrid, looking over her shoulder to see if Elena would trail behind them.

"Of course." Rebekah turned to Gwen with a look on her face that portrayed how it was obvious that Elena would follow them. "She needs what we know more than we need what she knows. She thinks she's important and expects us to behave accordingly, so I have no problem proving how wrong she is."

Gwen couldn't really argue with Rebekah on that. Elena had arrived at the house with an air of superiority that could not be ignored, which didn't sit well with either girl, especially with Rebekah. The halfling was now understanding why the blonde Original had a problem with Elena and her ancestry. Gwen found Elena to be manipulative and self-centered, carrying herself with the expectation that things will go her way. It just rubbed her the wrong way how the doppelgänger was trying to have Rebekah submit to her demands with the goal of killing Klaus, which was something she would not stand for.

The pair arrived at the kitchen with Rebekah going straight for the refrigerator and Gwen looking over the blonde's shoulder to inspect what they could eat. They ended up picking a few fruits that they piled into a bowl after peeling the few that had skin. Rebekah was more thirsty than hungry, but she wanted something stronger than a blood bag.

"What about the necklace?" came the voice of Elena as she appeared on the doorway of the kitchen.

Rebekah gave Gwen a knowing look before returning her gaze to Elena. "You mean the necklace that wasn't Stefan's to give?" She picked up a grape from the bowl Gwen held in her hands, popping it into her mouth. "It belonged to the Original witch."

Elena frowned at this. "The one who put the curse on Klaus?"

"That's another question," Rebekah reminded the doppelgänger. "It's our turn."

"Is Mikael still chained up in that cemetery?" asked Gwen.

Elena breathed, nodding, "Yes."

Rebekah didn't know if she should feel proud for catching the doppelgänger's lie or fear that Mikael's whereabouts were unknown. "Not just the hybrid curse," Rebekah opted to answer Elena's previous question. "She's the one who turned us into vampires." She could still remember that one night she heard her parents trying to convince Ayana to help them keep their family safe, how they resorted to doing the spell without the other witch's help and decided to rely on Linah. "Now move, you're in the way," she said as she walked around Elena with Gwen at her side and Elena following.

"Why do you want to know about the Originals?" Gwen asked Elena, looking at the latter over her shoulder as she ate a slice of an orange.

"To know more about Mikael and if it's worth waking him up. The last thing I want is someone worse than Klaus in town," answered Elena.

Rebekah gave Gwen a pointed look that told the halfling that Elena was lying, which had the young hybrid trying to figure out why the brunette was so intent on wanting to learn more about the history of the Original family. It didn't add up and her head was beginning to throb as it also absorbed the information Rebekah was retelling.

"Wait, vampirism was a form of protection?" Elena asked as she followed the two girls.

Rebekah raised an incredulous eyebrow at Elena. "What else would it be?"

Elena shrugged as she guessed, "A curse?"

"My parents only saw a way of keeping their children alive," Rebekah explained. "Now, it's our turn to ask a question," she said. "Where is the dashing Stefan? He's been rather absent the last few days."

"With Damon," said Elena. "Bonding, I think."

"Brotherly love, huh?" Rebekah wondered out loud, smiling.

"Still, why did your parents stay if they were so afraid of the werewolves?" Elena asked, wanting to stick close to the story and prevent anything from derailing her. "Why not leave?"

Rebekah paused in her steps, causing the other two girls to stop as she turned to face Elena. "Pride," she answered. "My father didn't want to run. He wanted to fight and be superior to the wolves. Where they could bite, we had to bite harder. Where they had speed, we had to be faster. Agility, strength, senses." She sighed heavily as the memories kept resurfacing in her mind. "Ayana wanted no part in the spell, so it all fell in the hands of my mother."

"In her hands?" asked Elena, frowning in confusion. "How could she do anything?"

Gwen faced Elena. "Because their mother was also a witch."

Elena's brows scrunched up. "What?"

"The witch of the Original family," Gwen clarified, becoming annoyed when Elena failed to catch on. "The Original witch."

"Our turn," Rebekah said as they entered the library, looking around the room in search of a good drink. "Where do they keep the best vintage?" She stared at Elena as the teenager gestured to the furniture placed against the back of the couch.

Elena was still shocked by Rebekah's revelation, so she asked, "But if your mother was a witch, then–"

"Am I?" Rebekah cut in and shook her head. "No, a witch is nature's servant; a vampire is an abomination of nature." She looked through the cabinets and pulled out an aged bottle, inspecting the label and deeming it a good one. "You can either be one or the other, never both." She turned to look at Gwen and Elena. "My mother did this for us, so she did not turn, but she was helped by her faerie friend, Linah."

"A faerie helped make you and your family vampires?" Gwen couldn't help but ask as she went to sit down on an armchair with the bowl of fruits on her lap, growing curious with the origin of the vampire species.

Rebekah nodded as she picked up a glass before going over to stand next to the armchair Gwen occupied. "Linah helped my mother with the binding of the ingredients but did not participate in the actual spell." She glanced down at Gwen. "She only did it to help my mother and my siblings, _not_ my father. They used faerie blood for life and immortality, a human sacrifice to represent the life we wanted to leave behind and the ancient white oak tree, one of nature's eternal objects, to bind the essence of the spell." She placed her glass and the bottle on the coffee table before she approached the fireplace to turn it on, needing some sort of distraction to get through what came next. "That night, my father offered us wine laced with faerie blood. And then he drove his sword through our hearts."

Elena gasped and stated, "He killed you."

After getting the fire started, Rebekah turned to Elena. "And he wasn't delicate about it either." She reached for the bottle of wine she picked out, broke the neck off with ease and threw it into the now-raging fireplace. She poured some wine into her glass as she recalled the coolness of her father's sword as it entered her chest and impaled her heart with the screams of her brothers still ringing in her ears. "We had to drink more blood to complete the ritual."

Gwen hummed, "Human blood."

"It was euphoric. The feeling of power was indescribable," Rebekah laughed. She could perfectly remember the first time she fed on human blood, how she was initially disgusted before that was overridden by the pleasure that engulfed her entire body, bringing to life what had died. "And yet, the witch Ayana was right about the consequences. Even with the help of fae magic–the purist thing in the world–the Spirits still turned on us and balanced out what had been created by giving a weakness to every strength. Everything that had been used on the spell could be used against us."

"The sun burned you," Gwen guessed a weakness.

Rebekah nodded as she placed the bottle on the coffee table and took a sip of her wine. "And though our mother found a solution for the sun, there were other problems," she paused as her lips twitched at the memories. "Neighbors who had opened their homes to us could now keep us out, flowers at the base of the white oak burned and prevented compulsion, and the spell decreed that the tree that helped give us life could also take it away, so we burned it to the ground." She could still remember the warmth she felt when her father and brothers took a torch to the white oak tree that had been near her home, making sure that it would be nothing but ashes.

"Does that apply for every white oak?" Gwen asked, since she knew that white oak trees still existed.

"No, it had to be the one that was used for the spell," said Rebekah, calming Gwen's worries about a tree that could be used to kill an Original. "But the darkest consequence was something my parents never anticipated," she further explained, being swept up by her past. "The hunger. Faerie blood made us immortal and human blood had made us reborn and it was blood that we craved above all else to maintain our immortality, which we couldn't control and led to another weakness. Niklaus' second kill had been a faerie, which had been fueled by the incapability of managing the craving we all had for the fae blood that gave us life, and so Nature gave the wolves the ability to protect the faeries with their bite." Her eyes locked on Elena's. "And with that, the predatory species was born."

After eating another grape, Gwen turned to look up at Elena who stood behind the couch with no intention of sitting down. "So, how did you find Mikael?" she asked, wanting to know how it was so easy for the residents of this town to find the patriarch of the Original family.

Elena glanced at Gwen. The half-fae could tell that the doppelgänger didn't want to answer that question. Elena fidgeted as she looked at anything else that wasn't Gwen or Rebekah, thinking about what she could say that would be a satisfying answer that wouldn't garner any suspicion, not that her silence was doing her any favors.

"Answer the question," Rebekah pushed, eyes narrowed on the brunette.

"My brother found him," Elena said, thinking that it was best to answer with the truth.

Rebekah scoffed. "She asked 'how', not 'who'."

"He can speak to the dead, so he asked a dead girlfriend where Mikael was," Elena sighed in defeat, knowing there was no way around mentioning her brother's talent.

"He can speak to the dead?" asked Gwen, eyebrows raised.

"He probably had a near death experience or something of that ilk," Rebekah explained. "I've met his kind before."

Gwen nodded as she hummed, now remembering something she read in a book. "Like a medium?"

"Exactly, but real ones," Rebekah said with a nod, taking another sip of her wine.

"Why did Mikael start hunting Klaus?" Elena spoke up, now wanting to understand why Klaus was so afraid of the man who raised him.

"When Nik made his first human kill, it triggered his werewolf gene. Not to mention that he also blamed my brother for Henrik's death." Rebekah shrugged and poured more wine into her glass. "With that, he became my father's greatest shame."

Gwen was familiar with this part of the story, and the parts Rebekah skimmed over. Klaus wasn't just Mikael's greatest shame, he was also his greatest disappointment, which was how Klaus told her it felt like. It always pained her to hear how Klaus was so brutally mistreated by his own father, sometimes to the point of death. The nights the Original hybrid reminisced about his past were so painful, but Gwen always listened and comforted him, wanting to show him that he was not alone like he thought he was. She couldn't help but smile to herself as she remembered how she used to climb onto his lap when she was small, and he would tell her such fascinating stories of his immortal life in many different places to get her to sleep.

"Yeah. Elijah told me this part of the story," said Elena, breaking Gwen away from her memories. "Your mother had had an affair with one of the werewolf villagers. Klaus wasn't Mikael's son."

"She tried to make it right," said Rebekah.

"By putting a curse on him," Gwen huffed. "That doesn't erase the affair."

"It did, in her mind," argued Rebekah, wholly agreeing with Gwen, but her family was just too dysfunctional and damaged to see reason, especially after they transitioned into vampires. "And then she turned her back on him, but Mikael's greatest weakness as a human was his pride." A humorless laugh escaped her. "As a vampire, that was magnified. He went on a rampage and killed half the village, which included humans, werewolves, and faeries. Among the slain were Linah and her daughters, the very same ones who always helped us and aided my mother in her spell to turn us into vampires." She turned to face the fireplace and closed her eyes to compose herself as she recalled how she had found the bodies of her childhood friends. "Then he came home and killed her."

Elena didn't bother to hide the stunned look in her face. "Mikael killed your mother?"

Rebekah turned back around to face Elena. "He said she broke his heart so he would break hers. He tore it from her chest as Nik watched." She could easily remember the amount of pain she felt when she had to bury her mother. "Afterwards, my father took off in a rage. Nik stayed, so he could help me bury her. He knew I had to say goodbye to my mother before we moved on." A small smile then worked its way onto her lips. "And then we stuck together as one, always and forever."

Gwen smiled at the last few words. "He always said that to me."

"That's how much he cares for you, Weny," Rebekah told the halfling with a grin. "Those words are not taken lightly in my family."

"Always and forever," Elena echoed before she gave Rebekah a pointed look. "Even though he locked you in a coffin for ninety years?"

"You do know that we're vampires, right? You get used to many things that wouldn't be tolerated as a human." Rebekah shrugged as she placed her glass on the coffee table, having had her fill of wine before she grabbed a slice of apple from the bowl on Gwen's lap that she ate in one bite. "Our emotions are heightened. I'm stubborn, Elijah moral, and Nik," she paused as she sighed, "Nik has no tolerance for those who disappoint him. Over a thousand years as a family we've all made that mistake more than once."

"But you still love him?" Elena asked.

Rebekah raised an eyebrow at Elena. "He's my brother," she said matter-of-factly. "And that is something that will never ever change." She then stopped and frowned at the brunette, realizing that she had said more than she needed to. "I think we've played this little game long enough."

"One last question," Gwen said as she placed her empty bowl on the coffee table before she stood to face Elena. "You wanted to learn about Mikael, but only because you wanted to know if there was some way for you to kill Klaus without him, correct?"

"Yes," Elena sighed. "Still, I do want to know one good reason for us not to use Mikael."

Rebekah scowled at Elena. "And I've given you a thousand!" she almost snarled. "But you will anyway. I know you want him to help you kill my brother, I'm not stupid."

"It's no secret that I want Klaus dead," Elena said, nodding.

"Do you have any idea what it means to work with Mikael?" Gwen took a step closer to Elena, glaring at the doppelgänger with such intensity that her eyes glowed. "Do you think he'll help you out of the goodness of his heart?" She could feel how her heart thundered in her chest when Elena mentioned she wanted Klaus dead. "I know enough about him to assure you that he will kill you and everyone in this town if things don't go his way. He's not as dramatic as Nik, so the deaths will be quick. And you have nothing on him that will keep him in line or something that you can use to put him down."

"It's not Mikael who has a hold over Stefan's life, and over mine," Elena argued, now becoming cautious due to the anger she saw reflected in Gwen's eyes.

Gwen shook her head. "No, only yours, but you're too stupid to actually think of a better way that won't put everyone you care about in danger. You can stop pretending that you're doing this for the greater good or because Nik has made your life hell." At the small sign of discomfort that Elena showed, Gwen continued. "You're just angry and want to get back at him, no matter the cost, and you should own up to it because no one would fault you for it."

"Doesn't matter. They can wake Mikael or call him or whatever at their own peril," Rebekah said as she approached Elena, leaning her face close to the doppelgänger's apprehensive one. "Make no mistake, if you come after my brother, _I will rip you apart_," she hissed, her eyes filled with an untamed fire born out of protectiveness. "And I get my temper from my father."

.

This was not the way Stefan would have expected his day to go about, wishing he had stayed chained to a chair in the cell below the city jail.

The day had started out the same way it had for the last few days where Stefan was a prisoner to the torment that Lexi had started, which was why he found it was a nice change of pace to have been released by his older brother, something that had taken him by surprise. He knew Damon had only released him of the torture of having to be dried up day after day with the hope that they could bond and bring out the emotions Klaus had forced him to turn off, but he would deal with anything that would get him out of his imprisonment. His mood had been lifted after getting his fill of waitresses and booze without a care in the world, but it quickly soured when he found himself with in the presence of the man who Klaus claimed was a monster strolling into the establishment just as evening arrived before approaching him and his older brother at the bar.

On the other hand, Damon had no idea what to do with himself as he sat on a barstool, unmoving as he stared at Mikael from top to bottom. From all the chatter there was about the immortal vampire hunter, he expected…_more _in terms of appearance. It was like when he encountered werewolves for the first time, having expected some humanoid beast of immeasurable strength, only to find himself disappointed with how vulnerable they were. Still, he was no idiot. He could recognize that there was an air around Mikael that had him frozen in place, his very being screaming at him that this was not someone to take lightly.

Everything and everyone in the bar faded for the Salvatore brothers, their undivided attention being focused on Mikael.

"Is Klaus still in the country?" Mikael questioned Stefan, surprised that the young vampire squared up to him and managed to keep himself in check with no difficulty whatsoever, which told him that the youngest Salvatore had switched off his humanity.

"I can't tell you," was Stefan's blank response as he stood in front of Mikael.

Mikael opted to try another question. "Has he spoken to you since he left?"

"I can't tell you," Stefan repeated his previous response.

"All right," Mikael sighed, slowly losing his patience. His hand twitched restlessly, wanting nothing more than to tear the blonde vampire's heart out. "Can you tell me the last time you spoke to Niklaus?"

Stefan glanced at Damon before he crossed his arms over his chest, annoyed with the many questions he figured Mikael knew he couldn't answer. "I am compelled to do what Klaus says, and he says to keep my damn mouth shut."

"I really hope this game of twenty questions isn't your secret weapon," Damon piped in as he stood from his seat to stand beside his brother, gaining Mikael's attention.

"You see, Damon," Mikael began as he placed a hand on the raven-haired Salvatore's left shoulder, an action that had Damon feeling like a good amount of weight was placed on his chest, filling him with nothing but dread. "I've been a vampire hunter longer than you've been alive. It's why I found you here." The corner of his lips twitched upward. "It's why I'm gonna find Niklaus. I just need a good lead and a good opportunity, which I believe you or your brother can provide."

Damon cleared his throat, trying to hide how nervous he felt while in the Original's grasp. "Well, Klaus has been running for about thousand years, so if you think you can get a work around here–"

Whatever Damon was about to say turned into a pained grunt when Mikael slammed his left hand into the elder Salvatore's chest, his fingers coiling around the one organ vampires couldn't live without. The sudden action had Stefan taking a step closer to Damon, feeling familiar emotions begin to claw through to the surface at the prospect of seeing his brother die right in front of him. Right then, there was only him, his older brother, and Mikael in their own bubble, as if time had stopped and they were the only ones inside the bar.

"Careful, Stefan. One move," Mikael warned, having seen how Stefan wanted to rush him in defense of his brother, "and his heart's gone." He squeezed Damon's heart, eliciting a sharp gasp out of his hostage before turning his attention to younger vampire. "Now, where is Klaus?" He saw how the youngest Salvatore's eyes shifted between Damon, the hand in his brother's chest and the owner of said hand. "Come on," the Original urged. "What's the trick question, Stefan?" he pressed. "One twist and he's dead. Unless you don't care of course."

To get his point across, Mikael moved his hand, which had Damon wincing and grunting with the pain bubbling up in his throat in choked pants.

"His emotions have been shut off," Damon gasped. "He can't care."

"Really?" Mikael hummed, not at all surprised, since he already concluded that Stefan's humanity was turned off. "His link to Klaus is so strong that he will let his own brother die?"

Stefan wanted nothing more than to turn around and walk out of the bar, but his body wouldn't move. His emotions weren't driving him, but his body and mind did whatever they wanted without his consent, which was to find a way to keep Damon alive. It was more instinct than anything else as he tried to think of a way to give Mikael something, anything to appease him. And as he locked eyes with Damon, he _felt panic_.

"No ideas?" Mikael asked Stefan. "Think, Stefan!" he almost growled before he sighed. "I guess you're right," this he said to Damon. "He's a dead end. And so are you, Damon." He went to jerk his hand out of Damon's chest with the vampire's heart in his hand, but a hand on his wrist stilled him.

"Wait!" Stefan hissed, spouting the first thing that came to mind. "I can bring him back. I can lure Klaus back to Mystic Falls. He has more than one reason to."

Mikael nodded and carelessly tore his hand out of oldest Salvatore's chest, leaving the heart inside a panting Damon who leaned against the bar for support. The Original reached for a napkin on the counter and began to clean the blood from his hand, his eyes focused on Stefan. "And there is our loophole," he chuckled. "Just had to rile you up a bit. Now, what reason is there that assures me that Niklaus will come back to Mystic Falls?"

Stefan closed his eyes for a moment before he gave Damon a pointed look, telling his brother that he couldn't say more.

Damon realized what his brother wanted to say, so he did it for him. "A girl," he panted as he waited for his chest to stitch itself back together.

"Ah, a lover," sighed Mikael, not at all interested. He couldn't rely on a woman his supposed son claimed to be infatuated with, not when Klaus could easily discard her to save his own skin.

"No," argued Stefan.

"More like a stray he took in or something," Damon elaborated for his brother. "He cares about her, but your darling daughter keeps her close."

"That's interesting, though it wouldn't be the first time," said Mikael, remembering the last time he was in New Orleans and destroyed whatever life his children had there.

"She's half-faerie and half-human," Damon supplied.

Mikael's eyebrows rose. "Now _that_ makes it even more interesting." He could use that. He then turned to Stefan. "Get Klaus back to Mystic Falls, and I will drive a stake through his heart." His face morphed into a glare. "Fail, and I'll drive it through yours."

.

Staring at her reflection in the mirror in her room's bathroom after wiping a good amount of fog from the reflective surface, Gwen felt as refreshed as she appeared as steam filled the room, having just gotten out of the bath. Her long and lightened tresses of cinnamon-brown hair were wet and smelled like vanilla, sticking to her olive skin with water dropping to the floor or cascading down her bare shoulders that were not covered by the towel she had wrapped around her body. She picked up a smaller towel that she used to ruffle her hair to dry it as best she could before she picked up a brush to comb back her hair. She then proceeded to do her nightly routine of brushing her teeth, cleaning her face, and applying her night cream, taking her time to take advantage of the warmth in the bathroom.

In Gwen's opinion, it had been a rather long day for her. She imagined Rebekah felt the same after digging up her past, recounting what were the last days she spent as a human before being forced into an immortal life, a life she had no choice but to accept. The halfling couldn't even begin to understand what that must've felt like, to have your father standing over you with a sword he used to still your heart with your mother supporting him, not bothering to offer an explanation or any form of comfort.

While she complained about the way Klaus sometimes handled things, Gwen still cared about him and saw a side of him that she selfishly took advantage of because he always kept it hidden while with others, except with her. She could and would never think that Klaus would be capable of laying a hand on her. Yes, he was cruel and controlling and many other things, but she recognized that it all came from the young boy he once was who didn't have a parent to protect him or give him the love he wanted. So, he tried to give her everything he never had, wanting to fill her days with happiness. And that was how she knew he wasn't his father.

Shaking her head to allow her mind some rest, Gwen decided that she had spent enough time in the comforting confines of the bathroom, so she opened the door and shivered when the cool air of the bedroom ghosted over her exposed skin, feeling goosebumps all over her body. She went over to the drawers of the dresser in her room and took out some underwear and her short-sleeved, pink nightdress that reached above her knees and had an allover print of T-rex dinosaurs, which she proceeded to put on and matched with light gray socks.

After having made herself comfortable, Gwen left her room to make herself some tea before going to bed, needing something warm to help her fall sleep. The hallways were dark and silent as she made her way to the stairs before descending to the first floor that no longer echoed with songs from Bon Jovi. As she walked to the kitchen, she took care to be vigilant with how quiet the house was. Just as she was about to reach her destination, a distinct sound caught her attention, making her pause at the doorway of the kitchen. She frowned as she turned her attention in the direction of the library. She could have sworn she heard sobs coming from her favorite room in the house, prompting her to investigate.

Once she reached the library, Gwen peeked inside. What–or better yet, who–she found had her eyes widening with worry. Her heart broke when she saw Rebekah crumpled on the floor in front of the fireplace with a hand over her mouth to try and stifle her sobs as tears left a wet trail on her pale and freckled cheeks. Every whimper that escaped the Original jabbed Gwen's heart with sadness.

"Bekah?" Gwen breathed as she made her way to the blonde vampire, kneeling beside the crying girl. "What's wrong? What happened?"

The only response Gwen got was another sob, which left her feeling helpless as she watched Rebekah experience a pain that was not visible for the halfling to soothe. The halfling lifted a hand and slowly placed it on Rebekah's sleeveless shoulder, eliciting a flinch from the vampire. It appeared that the contact from skin to skin was enough to clear Rebekah's mind from the many thoughts running through her head, so she lifted her head to focus her eyes on the dainty hand on her shoulder, following the arm that had her red and puffy eyes land on Gwen's worry-filled face.

The next thing Gwen knew was that a gasp escaped her when a hand wrapped itself around her neck and shoved her against a wall, hissing when her back and head throbbed with pain. She opened her eyes to meet Rebekah's vampiric features, staring into blue eyes surrounded by blood red. The halfling was speechless and frightened as she tried to understand what was happening. "Bekah?" she wheezed when the hand on her neck slightly tightened, prompting her hands to grab Rebekah's wrist to somehow get the vampire to stop squeezing her neck. She could use her magic, but she couldn't really focus when air wasn't reaching her lungs.

"Did you know?" Rebekah snarled as her face inched closer to the halfling's.

"What?" Gwen gasped, unable to comprehend what Rebekah was referring to.

"Did you know that my bastard of a brother killed our mother?" Rebekah yelled at Gwen with her fangs bared, her hand tightening just a bit more against the hybrid's windpipe.

Even though her life was being threatened and could be snuffed out with a flick of Rebekah's wrist, Gwen's mouth hung open and her eyes grew wide in shock. Her mind was trying to process what Rebekah had just said, which was why she could only muster to ask, "What are you talking about?"

"Do not take me for someone who is stupid!" Rebekah growled, seeking for some truth to tumble out of Gwen's mouth to match what Elena had told her. "You must've known. You _had_ to know."

Gwen managed to shake her head with difficulty, her eyes locked on Rebekah's. "I don't know, I swear." These were the only words she could come up with, and she hoped that they would be enough. "Bekah," she wheezed, losing strength.

The Original vampire's anger was then forgotten when sadness grabbed onto her heart once more, tears gathering in her blue orbs as she is once more plagued by Elena's revelation about her mother's death. For her, it felt like one of her brother's silver daggers had been run through her heart, desiccating her slowly as pain was pumped into every corner of her body. She was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't even notice when she had released Gwen, deaf to the coughs coming from the half-fae who had crumpled on the floor on her knees while clutching at her throat as if to help her lungs fill up with oxygen.

Taking large gulps of air, Gwen lifted her head to stare up at Rebekah's tearstained face. She winced when she cleared her throat before she managed to climb to her feet, standing in front of the sobbing blonde but staying cautious for any sudden movements. "Bekah?" she tried once more, wary. "What happened?"

Rebekah released a choked sob with a hand over her mouth, her eyes staring at nothing on the floor. "He killed her," she mumbled as she cried, fighting to hold back her sobs and the tears that plugged up her throat. "Nik," she paused as her eyes hardened, the nickname tasting like poison on her tongue and spat with venom, "_Klaus_ killed her."

Gwen's eyebrows furrowed, a hand still over her sore throat. "Killed who?" She had been afraid to ask, but she had to know what had reduced such a strong person like Rebekah to tears.

The blonde vampire's teary gaze met the hybrid's soft eyes, her mouth opening without a sound leaving it. The pain on Rebekah's face was so evident and raw that Gwen could almost _feel_ it in her very being. The young halfling just wanted to know what had caused the blonde such incredible pain, if only so that she can find a way to take away what was causing her friend such turmoil.

Before Gwen could ask Rebekah the question again, the latter finally choked out, "Nik…killed _my_ mother."

The words reached Gwen's ears, but it took a while for her to process the meaning of what Rebekah was saying, thinking that the blonde was talking about some other person. The young hybrid wanted to believe that it had to be another person called 'Nik', but she knew better. It was like her mind purposely went blank to keep her from connecting every word in Rebekah's sentence, trying to push away the words that were now echoing in her mind on repeat that had stunned her heart as she tried to come up with an argument or something to refute what Rebekah accused Klaus of doing, but her mouth simply hung open as words failed her.

Wordlessly and with an impassive face, Gwen approached Rebekah and simply wrapped her arms around the vampire, hoping that she could offer comfort to alleviate even an inch of the pain the blonde was experiencing. The action appeared to have broken through the Original's reverie because the blonde's whimpers turned into loud sobs and wheezes and chokes as she held onto the back of Gwen's nightgown with a strong grip, crushing the halfling to her front in search of some relief for her pain. The girl stayed quiet with her arms around the vampire's shoulders. Rebekah's tears soaked the half-fae's shoulder as her own began to fall down her cheeks without making a sound as her face remained expressionless.

Gwen's heart broke for the hurting girl.

* * *

**End of chapter!**

**I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. It was a bit of a hassle to write as I tried to make sense of it all for you all to make sense of it. I know that I've stuck close to canon, but the changes here and there are important for when we start to diverge from the show. I hope you guys will like the changes that I have planned.**

**Now, remember to update and review your thoughts and love and likes and dislikes, they help me write better and keep everything from falling apart.**

**See you in the next chapter!**


	15. different people

**Greetings, all! First of all, I apologize for the late update, but there was a test that I had to study for, which I couldn't fail, so all of my focus went to that. And I managed to get everything sorted, so I decided to give you guys another chapter as soon as I was done with the test, so here it is. Since I'll be posting it today, there won't be an update on Wednesday, so expect for updates to continue to be on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Today is a special occasion, since you were all very supportive and patient with me.**

**Now, to respond to those lovely reviews you all left behind that I love reading:**

**-_xenocanaan_: I agree, vampires getting emotional is never good and blinds them, especially since their emotions are heightened. I like to think that while Originals have better control, they can still have their moments when strong emotions surface. Well, I don't want to spoil Gwen's involvement in all of this, but it's not gonna be a fun ride for her. And while June doesn't make a heroic entrance in this chapter, she does appear!**

**-_Love . Fiction . 2020_: Thank you, love!**

**-_GreenLilly_: Thank you! And yes, I want Rebekah to have a friend, since she never really had one in the show, you know. She never had that one person she felt comfortable enough to trust, so here enters Gwen. And yeah, Damon and Stefan being snitches will complicate things. And this is Mikael we're talking about...I'll leave it at that.**

**-_Undercoverlikeaspy_: I am so happy that you do and will continue to love it even more! And we haven't even gotten to meeting the other Mikaelsons, so this makes me very happy, since I was worried that the whole introduction into the story was taking too long.**

**-_PrincessMagic_: I am so glad you liked it, and I will be trying to show more flashbacks like that. I find it a bit difficult, but I like showing the past, it's so good to work with. And the bond between Gwen and Rebekah will continue to grow, so look forward to that!**

**-_littlemissy3982_: I am so glad you like my story! And you're onto something, since Gwen is a person who was raised by him and she has mentioned that she's biased because of that, so she's very aware of herself.**

**-_jgood27_: Very happy you love it and here is another chapter for you to read!**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing from The Vampire Diaries and claim no ownership over anything pertaining to it.**

* * *

_different people_

.

.

.

Colorado Springs, Colorado

11 years ago

.

_A mess of dark brown curls on the head of a child of five bounced on her back as she ran down a staircase. She wore light denim overalls over a mint green T-shirt with a necklace she always wore around her neck that she rarely took off. Her big hazel eyes that were bright with glee matched the broad smile that decorated her pink lips. The small girl panted with excitement as she passed through the back door of the grand and beautiful two-story home surrounded by trees and was nestled near Cheyenne Mountain and 'far away from it all'._

_Once she was out on the terrace, the small girl's bare feet met cool stone as she enjoyed how sunny the day was with fluffy clouds dancing in the blue sky as a cool breeze ruffled her tresses. And the spectacular view of nature around the property never failed to mesmerize her._

_Having taken in her surroundings, the girl's eyes focused on the back of a man who was painting in the middle of the backyard with a small table beside the canvas with a variety of paint colors and brushes on display. The little girl giggled as she ran toward the man, the grass tickling the skin beneath her feet. And before she could ram herself against his legs, the blond man placed the brush he had been using on the table and turned around with his arms open to catch the squealing child that he hoisted her up in the air before placing her on his hip, prompting her to wrap her arms around his neck._

"_There she is. The birthday girl," Klaus chuckled, keeping his arms coiled around her small body. "I was wondering when Sleeping Beauty would awaken from her slumber to celebrate her special day with me."_

"_Good morning," little Gwen greeted._

_Klaus hummed as he raised an eyebrow, "Good afternoon, you mean." He exhaled while shaking his head. "I should have known better than to give you chocolate ice cream before bedtime." He smiled as he recalled the night before with fondness. Even though it was a struggle to get the girl to sleep after giving into her big eyes that pleaded for him to let her have some of the frozen sweet, he couldn't deny that he had fun. Even so, he should have known better than to give a child so much sugar before bed._

"_Only because you wanted to," she justified, her eyes shining with fake sheepishness._

"_Oh, I know," said Klaus, grinning at the child. It amazed him how he was an immortal being with incredible strength and healing abilities, but he was exhausted and his back was still sore after having fallen asleep sitting on the floor against Gwen's bed while reading The Princess Bride, a book and movie she was now obsessed with, which was his own fault for having introduced her to them on her last birthday. "I had to live with that decision," he added._

_Gwen looked at the canvas and smiled at the image of a field of lily flowers under a clear, blue sky. "It's pretty."_

"_I'm relieved," Klaus sighed with a dramatic sigh of relief as he glanced at his painting before returning his attention to Gwen. "So, do you like it?"_

"_Very much!" The small girl smiled at Klaus, asking, "For my birthday?"_

_He nodded before he hummed with a smile, "It is. I hope it's to your liking."_

_The little girl hummed in agreement, her curls bouncing around her face. "I love it."_

"_I know it's your favorite flower," he told her. "And it's not the only gift I have for you on this very special day." This elicited a pleasant gasp from her that had him smiling wide in response._

_Gwen gave Klaus a brilliant grin that matched his dimpled one before she asked, "Really?"_

_Klaus chuckled at the absolute wonder he saw in her eyes, nodding as he said, "Really."_

"_What is it?" she asked._

"_Well," he began, turning around to go back to the terrace. "The painting was done on a whim, an extra present, if you will. This other one, I made myself from the heart."_

"_I want to see it," Gwen squealed with excitement as he walked them over to a dark brown couch with white cushions and an armchair on either side of the couch with a coffee table in between the three pieces of furniture._

_Klaus sat down on the cushioned couch, readjusting Gwen to have her sit on his lap facing forward. He reached for a long, velvet box in red that sat on the coffee table and had a white bow wrapped around it. "Here we are," he breathed as he presented the gift to Gwen, which she took. He placed his chin on her head, grinning as he watched her carefully remove the bow, since he found it amusing how she disliked tearing open gift boxes without a care__–__unlike most children. "Happy birthday, princess."_

_Gwen dropped the white ribbon on the coffee table before her dainty hands opened the velvet box, the contents inside causing her eyes to widen in delight as she placed the box on her lap to reach for the piece of jewelry. She absolutely loved the charm of a silver wolf that hung from the silver chain, so she quickly fastened the bracelet around her wrist, finding that it was a bit too big, but that didn't matter to her. She turned her head to look up at Klaus with a toothy smile. "I love it!"_

"_Good," Klaus said as he cuddled her close to his chest, elated that she adored her present. "If you ever feel lonely, you only need to hold this close to your heart and I will be there," he said as he touched the wolf charm. "This wolf will watch over you until I am by your side, protecting you in my place."_

_Gwen looked up at Klaus and smiled, and he would be a bloody liar if he said that it didn't melt his heart. It made him so happy to have someone who loved him unconditionally, if only for some time. He wasn't one to delude himself into believing that this moment would last as it was forever, since she would grow up learning many things about him that she would probably condemn him for. He would treasure whatever time he had with her, also knowing that his time with her was limited, for he was immortal, and she was not. Turning her into a vampire wasn't an option, since faeries were unable to be anything else, and oh how he wished he would not have to suffer her passing, but that was inevitable._

_Still, he made a promise__–__to have her live a long and happy life__–__and he intended to keep it._

.

Mystic Fall, Virginia

Present Day

.

Gwen frowned at Rebekah from where she sat on the edge of her bed. She placed a cup of vanilla tea that the blonde had brought her on the bedside table, having only drunk half the contents. She was unable to finish it due to the words that had just left the Original vampire's mouth. "You're not serious," the half-fae huffed.

It was only the day after Rebekah told Gwen about what had really happened to the Original witch, how it was not Mikael but Klaus who killed the matriarch of the Original family. The halfling had stayed up all night next to Rebekah on the blonde's bed, having found it difficult to succumb to slumber when her mind was too jumbled for her to even get an hour of sleep, and she had also wanted to watch over her friend who had cried herself to sleep as she agonized over the truth of her mother's death.

The exhaustion the young hybrid felt didn't help when it clashed with her current annoyance at what Rebekah had told her she talked about with Damon, Stefan and Elena when they asked to speak to the Original around an hour ago after they arrived at the house at dusk. Gwen was irked for having been excluded, but it was mostly because she didn't want to leave Rebekah alone, not when she was so vulnerable. Still, she trusted her friend when she assured the halfling that she would be fine.

Gwen took a deep breath to calm herself before exhaling, "Tell me that you're joking, Bekah."

Rebekah sighed as she stared down at Gwen, her eyes blank and her shoulders sagged in defeat. "I am not jesting, pet."

"You do know that they're using you, right?" Gwen asked as she stood up to stand in front of the centuries-old vampire. "You're talking about helping them kill Nik." Speaking such words left a bad taste in her mouth, as if she had chewed and swallowed copper.

Rolling her eyes, Rebekah said, "It's less than he deserves."

"This is Mikael we're talking about, Rebekah!" Gwen exclaimed, now growing fearful at the thought of such a monster being anywhere near Klaus. She didn't think that he'd be in town, let alone working with the supernatural residents of Mystic Falls. "Are you thinking this through?" she asked, not expecting an answer. "What makes you think Mikael won't hurt you in his pursuit of Nik?"

"It doesn't matter!" Rebekah exclaimed in return, now regretting having told Gwen about the plan to kill Klaus. She knew she should have expected such a response from the hybrid.

"Rebekah," Gwen began, her brows furrowed.

"Even if it is just a minor inconvenience," Rebekah began as she took a deep breath to calm herself as her anger began to grow once more, "I will direct my fury at him and make him feel just as I do. He ripped my heart from my chest, just like he did to my mother." She bit her lower lip to keep her voice from trembling. All she wanted was to hurt her brother and loom over him as he had done to her for almost her entire immortal life. And if that required her risking her life by assisting her father, then so be it. It wouldn't be the first time she had to resort to such means. "Even if it is for a small moment, I will take that chance."

"They're still using you as the gun and Mikael as the bullet so that they can pull the trigger." Gwen scoffed as she combed her shaky fingers through her soft tresses due to frustration and anxiety, now coming to terms with the news she received moments ago. "This has _nothing_ to do with whatever justice you want to get for your mother."

"It has everything to do with the fact that my bastard brother killed _my mother_," Rebekah argued, her eyes narrowing, but that did little to intimidate Gwen, given who she had been raised by.

"They don't care about you or what happened to your family, but I do," Gwen pushed further, wanting to make Rebekah see reason and not be taken advantage of in such a disgusting way. "I may not understand what you're going through." She gave Rebekah a sorrowful smile. "I can't even imagine the pain you must be feeling, but you have to think this through. They're not doing this to help you. Given the chance, they'll discard you the moment you're no longer useful."

Rebekah raised an eyebrow at Gwen. "Please," she snorted. "You don't care about how I feel. You only want to protect him, much like Elijah."

"I'm not going to be a hypocrite by denying that, because I don't want Nik to die, but I _do_ care about you, so make no mistake about that," Gwen said bluntly, which had Rebekah frowning, since she expected the half-fae to refute her claims, not agree with them. "Like I said, I can't imagine what you must be feeling, but these people for sure do not care about you or how this all affects you. They're only going to look out for themselves, no matter what happens to anyone else. How is that fair?"

Oh, how the conflict was growing within Rebekah the more she talked to Gwen, but she wanted to remain firm in her decision. "It wasn't fair for Klaus to kill my mother."

"Please, don't do this. I know this isn't what you actually want to do, Bekah." Gwen took Rebekah's hands in a tight but comforting grip, her hazel eyes never straying from staying locked on the vampire's blue orbs. "You're acting on anger, and that is something no one should do," she paused as she shook her head to clear her vision that swam a bit for some reason unknown to her. "They want to _kill your brother_," she said, speaking the words slowly and carefully for the blonde to fully understand what she was getting herself into with the group of supernatural beings of Mystic Falls, hoping that Rebekah would not be swept by her well-placed fury. "They want to kill him. Do you _really_ want that?" she asked once more. "Do you want to help your ass of a father, the same man who abused all of you for almost your entire human lives?"

The thousand-year-old vampire was suddenly assaulted by memories of her time with her brothers, wishing they would stay in the back of her mind, but she had no control over it. She felt water begin to gather in her eyes as she recalled her time as a little girl playing with her siblings in the forest so long ago, enjoying her time with each one of them. Finn was her oldest brother and tended to keep an eye on her, reprimanding her when needed. Elijah was always tender with her, building her up but keeping her grounded. Kol always protected her from anything and everything, always standing by her, even when she didn't do the same for him. Her darling Henrik was her little warrior as well as her confidant and loved spending time with her. And then there was Klaus, her once gentle brother who took her on strolls and struggled to shield her from any harm, which was why it destroyed her in such a colossal way to know that he was the one who killed her mother.

"I've suffered for a thousand years at the hands of my brother, be it out of fear and out of my own choice for stupidly remaining by his side," said Rebekah, shaking her head. "But he killed my mother."

With a heavy sigh, Gwen said, "Then, shouldn't it be _you_ who determines how Nik should be punished?" She tightened her grip on Rebekah's hands and gave the vampire a pleading look. "Please, Bekah. You and I can get through this somehow where we don't need to help these people."

Rebekah's eyes fell to the floor, becoming more and more confused with what she wanted to do. On one hand, she only held contempt for her brother for taking her mother and lying about it for over a thousand years. Yes, her father was a brute and filled with so much hatred that it frightened her, but Klaus still killed her mother. And even though she had not been the best mother, she was still her mother, the woman who loved and comforted her. On the other hand, she still loved her brother and the good memories she had with him made her so happy. Even after their relationship became a muddled and toxic mess throughout the centuries, she still loved her brother above all the hurt they had caused one another.

"Bekah, please," Gwen pleaded.

The Original exhaled heavily with her eyes closed for a moment as she steeled her resolve before looking up at Gwen with unshed tears. "I'm sorry," muttered Rebekah, shaking her head as her chest began to burn with anger at the thought of Klaus, her head conjuring up images of Klaus ripping her mother's heart from her chest. "I really am, Weny."

Gwen frowned, letting go of Rebekah's hands to place one of her own on her head when she became dizzy. "What?"

"I think it's best that you're not involved in this. You have my word that I won't let anything happen to you," Rebekah said as she walked by Gwen and went over to the nightstand to grab the younger girl's phone before pocketing it in her pants' pocket.

"Wait," Gwen mumbled as she frowned when she swayed a bit, her feet becoming like jelly, which had her placing a hand on the wall to steady herself. Her narrowed eyes locked with Rebekah's and found regret displayed in them. "What did you do?" she gasped as her body began to get heavy. She looked at the cup she left on the nightstand before frowning at the blonde vampire. "What did you do?"

"I just needed to make sure that you wouldn't interfere," Rebekah explained as she approached the half-fae. "I know you would do anything for my brother, but that could get you killed."

"Bekah," Gwen groaned as her vision turned black.

Rebekah was quick to grab the unconscious hybrid before the limp body hit the floor. She sighed as she gathered Gwen in her arms before placing the sleeping body on the bed, making sure the teenaged girl was in a comfortable position. The blonde stared down at the halfling with worry and listened for the soothing rhythm of the girl's heartbeat, making sure that she didn't overdo it with the amount of sleeping pills she grinded and incorporated in the tea she gave to Gwen earlier. It pained her having to resort to such methods with Gwen, but she didn't think that there would be any other way to ensure that the young hybrid would stay out of way and out of harm.

The Original had to admit that she admired the teenage girl's pure heart and sincere want to help, but what Rebekah wanted to do was something that would cause her newfound friend pain, given that she intended to make Klaus pay for what he did to their mother. It wasn't easy, playing a hand in what would be her brother's death, but she found that it was necessary. Her heart squeezed at the thought of her brother being dead and no longer a part of her life, her thoughts screaming at her that it was all wrong, but her anger was too great to rein in.

The last favor she would do for her brother was to ensure that Gwen wouldn't be harmed and would not be mixed up in what the Salvatore brothers and Elena planned to do. Somehow–in the short time they spent together–Rebekah found herself endeared to the faerie-human hybrid, something that surprised her. The vampire found such innocence in Gwen's eyes, innocence that allowed the young girl to embrace life, no matter how harsh and cruel it was. And Rebekah found she envied that, since it reminded her of her own self long before her father drove a sword through her heart.

Leaving Gwen's room, Rebekah made her way down the stairs to meet up with Damon, Stefan and Elena in the library, finding them standing around the lit fireplace to ward off the night's chilly air.

"I take it Thumbelina isn't on board with the plan?" was Damon's greeting for Rebekah when she entered the room, taking a sip of his bourbon. He used his enhanced hearing to listen in on Rebekah and Gwen's conversation, needing to stay alert for any signs of betrayal.

Rebekah's face was blank, not at all happy to be spending unnecessary time with the young vampires and the doppelgänger she detested with a passion. "You leave Gwen to me." She purposely ignored the body lying on the carpeted floor in front of the fireplace, feeling her undead heart skip a beat before it became still, her body becoming rigid at being in the presence of the man she abhorred. And it was seeing his desiccated body with a dagger in his chest that had her realizing what she was doing as Gwen's words registered in her mind, but she shook her head to keep herself from thinking too much. "So, don't concern yourself with her."

"You know," Damon began with a lopsided grin, "having her and knowing she is a potential weakness of the immortal asshole gives us a distinct advantage here that we could use."

Before Damon knew what happened, the glass of bourbon in his hand disappeared before it was slammed against his head, causing shards to cut into his skin as he yelped in pain from the burning and pulsing wounds the blonde vampire caused. He lifted a hand up to his bleeding face, managing to open his left eye that was now bloodshot to meet Rebekah's piercing glare as she stood a foot away from him.

"Damon!" Elena breathed as she raced to his side with her brows furrowed in concern, inspecting his cuts that were slowly healing.

"What the hell?" Damon hissed when Elena pulled a shard of glass from his head, letting it drop to the floor with many others before working to remove any other pieces of glass.

Stefan chuckled at the spectacle as he took a seat on an armchair. "That was fun to watch and oddly satisfying."

"I'm only going to say this once, so pay rapt attention, my darlings," Rebekah began with a finality to her voice. "Gwen is to have no part in any of this. If I find any of you going anywhere near her, I will skin you and hung you up to dry." Her gaze shifted between Damon and Elena, not bothering to threaten Stefan, given that he was compelled to also protect Gwen. "Am I understood, or is a demonstration needed?"

Damon shared a look with Elena before nodding at Rebekah. "I was only joking. We're sticking to the plan," he sighed with a groan when Elena ran a thumb over one of his cuts that sealed up. Mikael had previously agreed with him to use Gwen as bait to bring Klaus back into town, but it had too many risks, since they wouldn't know how Klaus would react and they needed him to be as predictable as they could get him. "No one goes near Klaus' little helper."

"Good," said Rebekah, stepping away from Damon to stand behind the armchair Stefan was occupying, needing to be as far away from her father as possible.

"All right," Damon exhaled heavily as he wiped away the blood from his face with the long sleeve of his shirt. "Let's get started." He then directed a pointed look at his younger brother. "You're up, Stef."

Stefan took a deep breath and exhaled through his nose before he reached into the pocket of his jeans and fished out his phone. He looked at the screen and swiped his finger on it a few times before placing it to his ear, leaning forward to place his other arm on his knee.

"_Portland is fantastic_," Klaus' accented voice greeted Stefan after a few rings. "_Once you get over all the whiny music and healthy-looking people, it is literally a breeding ground for werewolves_."

"Your father is dead," Stefan said in return as his eyes focused on the prone body of the Original on the floor some feet in front of him, deciding to be blunt and get right to the point. He could tell that his words caused Klaus to falter by a hitch he heard through the line.

"_What did you say to me?_" Klaus asked, his voice dropping into a whisper, as if all air had left him. All the immortal hybrid could think about was if Gwen and Rebekah were all right, which had him feeling anxious.

"Oh, my mistake," Stefan sighed. "Not your _actual_ father and not dead." He cleared his throat. "Mikael. Daggered." He paused as he waited for Klaus' reaction but was only met with silence, so he continued. "What do you want me to do with the body?"

Klaus huffed, "_Well, first, I want you to explain to me _exactly_ what happened_."

Stefan took a quick moment to recall the story he fabricated an hour earlier with Damon and Elena, thinking about every detail they came up with for any sort of question Klaus could throw his way to ensure that he was telling the truth. "Well," he began with a steady voice, "he suddenly showed up in town with the thought that he could use Elena and Gwen to lure you back into town. And, since you asked me to protect them, I had no choice but to risk my life to stop him." Having a bit of attitude was not difficult without his humanity, which helped sell the story. "Damon was with me, so we tried to subdue him."

Klaus's eyes narrowed. "_It's a miracle you're both alive_."

"He had a dagger on him, so we used that," Stefan explained, keeping himself from answering too quickly. "It was pure luck. It's all still a bit of a blur."

"_And Gwen?_" asked Klaus.

"She's fine," Stefan responded. "She got a little banged up during the struggle, so Rebekah got her to rest a bit."

"_I want to see him_," Klaus growled at the thought of Mikael harming Gwen or his sister. "_I want to see his rotting body for myself_."

"Well, he's here." Stefan heaved himself up from the armchair to stand next to Mikael's body to stare down at him. "Come by whenever," he added nonchalantly.

"_If you are lying to me, Stefan, your compulsion will expose you. So, answer with your life_," Klaus said with a dangerous edge to his voice. The thought of being fooled made him furious, especially when it came to the possibility of his father being dead, which was something he had dreamed of since before his transformation into an immortal. "_Is what you are saying the truth?_"

Stefan remembered how they all staged the supposed struggle with Mikael, needing it to have happened so that he would be able to claim it did occur. "It's true." He glanced up at Elena who now stood next to him, having watched her dagger Mikael. "I saw it with my own eyes."

"_I want to talk with Rebekah_," Klaus demanded.

"That's not a problem." Even though he couldn't be seen, he still shrugged as he looked to the female Original. "She's right here." He walked over to a tense Rebekah and handed his phone over to her.

Rebekah took a steadying breath as she looked down at the phone in her hands before placing it to her ear. "Hello, Nik."

"_Rebekah, love_," Klaus greeted her, and his voice only served to anger his sister as thoughts of her mother came to the forefront of her mind. "_Are you and Gwen all right?_"

"I arrived when it was all over," Rebekah answered. "The little pet had been choked and had a nasty gash on her head, so I forced her to rest a few moments ago with a bit of help of a sleeping pill to get her to settle down." She found it was better to lie to her brother with the truth. "She's quite stubborn, like you."

"_Of course, she is_," Klaus chuckled, imagining Gwen refusing to lie down and promising that she was all right, all to keep others from worrying about her. His laughter died as he asked, "_And what's this I hear about Mikael's tragic run-in with a dagger?_"

"It's true." Rebekah bit the inside of her cheek to keep herself from succumbing to her rage, taking a step closer to Mikael's body. It amazed her how she was still frightened of the man who raised her, even though he had a dagger in his chest that kept him in a forced sleep with no possibility of being able to wake up as long as the small weapon was in his heart. "He's finally out of our lives for good," she sighed, hearing Klaus do the same on the other end of the line. Oh, and how she wished that her words were true, which would have made her life better once upon a time. "I miss you, and so does Gwen." She cleared her voice. "We're quite miserable here."

"_I'll be home soon_," Klaus assured his sister.

"Good," Rebekah sighed. "I'll see you then, brother." She hung up the phone and gave it back to Stefan. "He bought it," she told the two vampires and teenage girl who were staring at her with trepidation in their eyes. "He's coming home." Her reassurance was enough to allow everyone to release a breath they had been holding back.

Rebekah gave Mikael's body one last look and took her leave to return to her room for a restless night, not wanting to spend another moment near him when she wasn't ready to face him.

.

Chicago, Illinois

.

A groan full of annoyance left Juniper as she looked around what had once been a clean bookstore with her long hair of brown tresses gathered in a high ponytail, wearing an old white T-shirt that was a little too big on her, which she paired with denim shorts and flip-flops. She was already grumpy when she came into the store from having woken up earlier than she usually did to get an early start on fixing the place that was a mess of broken decorations and books littering the floor.

The witch had been so happy when she received the call the night before that told her that she was allowed to enter the store after the police had taken their sweet time acquiring any and every evidence they could get their hands on to be able to apprehend the culprits. Still, she already felt exhausted just looking at the store that was left in disarray.

Juniper found relief that the safes she had in her office were still hidden and untouched with the help of her magic. The minute she was cleared to do as she pleased the night before, the young witch went to check that her two safes were undisturbed due to the enchantments she placed on them to keep them out of sight. The spell also made the safes impossible to be opened by anyone without a few carefully chosen words and her blood. Once she was sure that nothing important had been taken, she came to the conclusion that whoever broke in was looking for something specific and not just to steal whatever they thought was of any monetary value, since nothing was missing. She couldn't help but think that the person or people who broke into the store had to be of the supernatural kind, probably in search of her grimoire or herself, since she had nothing else that was of any serious value in the place. But she would have to investigate that another time, now needing to focus on cleaning up.

After making sure that the curtains covered the display windows and that the front door was closed, she took a deep breath to prepare herself to begin a spell that would pick up all of the books and put them back in their respective shelves, but her concentration was broken when her phone that was on top of the counter began to ring. She walked over to her ringing phone and picked it up to see the caller ID, growing even more annoyed when she saw who was calling her at such an inconvenient moment.

"What do you want, my good sir?" Juniper greeted after accepting the call and putting her phone to her ear.

"_A little birdie told me you were robbed_," Klaus' voice filtered through the line.

"You say it with such vagueness to make it sound mysterious, and we both know that the 'little birdie' is Gwen," said Juniper, taking a seat on a chair that she had to pick up from the floor.

Klaus hummed. "_Everything still in order?_"

Juniper couldn't help but smile at the question he posed, picking up on his concern that he tried to hide but she was able to pick up on it. She opted not to tease him for it…this time. "Yeah," she sighed, her lips turning down as she looked around at the work that was ahead of her. "Nothing important was taken and I think that selling this place is becoming an even better idea. After settling things here, I'll visit Missus Bixby in Florida to talk things over with her."

"_It's your best course of action_," Klaus told her, agreeing with her plan.

"I suppose," mumbled Juniper before her eyes narrowed at nothing in particular. "Wouldn't want to stay in a place that serves as a huge target."

"_Do you have an idea as to who broke and entered your humble abode?_" asked Klaus.

"Not yet, but whoever was here used magic," Juniper responded, her body tingling with the sensation of someone else's magic still floating in the air. Her eyes scanned the store in search of anything that didn't belong. "My best bet would be witches looking for my grimoire that used to belong to my mother, since it has some pretty heavy and intense spells that even I have yet to decipher completely. I mean, from what I can tell, she seemed to be a very powerful witch, so a lot of people might know of her."

"_That is a possibility_," Klaus sighed, and Juniper could tell that he was frowning. "_Any enemies or covens you've gotten on the bad side of, probably due to something _you_ did_?"

"Not that I know of. I've kept a pretty low profile and erased myself from wherever I might have left a bad impression," Juniper answered, her mind coming up empty with any possible suspects. "As a dark witch with a sketchy past full of mystery, I know better than to attract attention to myself from the wrong crowd."

Klaus snorted. "_You sure about that?_"

"So, what is the real reason for you to call me so early in the morning of this fine day?" she asked, steering away from his taunting. "It _is_ a miracle for you to actively seek me out and ask about my wellbeing, which tells me that you need something from me, since we both know that my stunning personality is too much for you to handle."

"_How on earth can you possibly make me want to strangle you through a phone call?_" Klaus snorted.

Juniper huffed out a mocking laugh. "Oh, I just have that effect on people." She cleared her throat. "So, what's up? Everything okay with Gwen and your sister?"

Klaus took a deep breath and exhaled, "_That's what I'm calling about_." This had Juniper frowning with concern, her back straightening up. "_I was having a rather good time amassing my hybrid army in Portland when I received some game-changing news, which had me getting on a five-hour flight to Virginia_."

"Wait." Juniper frowned and asked, "You're already back in Mystic Falls?"

"_I'll be arriving in the lovely town that is Mystic Falls in an hour or so_," he said with sarcasm coating each word. "_I had a rather interesting talk with Stefan and Rebekah last night about my father being dead_."

"Your father's dead?" Juniper asked with her body becoming still and her eyes widening in shock, her mouth hung open as she tried to process how it was possible for Mikael to be dead when he was an incredibly old vampire–an Original. "Are we talking about _the monster who monsters are afraid of_? _That_ guy?"

"_The same one_," said Klaus.

"How the hell did that happen?" asked Juniper, standing up to walk off some of the anxiety building up within her. "That's just…" she began but was unable to find the words to describe what she thought about the situation. "I don't even know what to say. I mean, the guy is a thousand years old with a terrifying résumé. How is he dead?"

"_Well, he's not exactly dead. He just had a supposed run-in with a dagger, but I don't like it_," Klaus told her, his nerves surfacing in how his voice appeared to slightly waver. "_It may be my paranoia, but this is all too good to be true, which includes Stefan painting me a rather interesting story of the doppelgänger being saved by him and his brother. My sister lacked any form of exuberant joy. And Gwen was conveniently absent from the conversation._"

Juniper perked up at this. "Is Gwen all right?"

"_I tried calling her, but her phone seems to have been turned off,_" he sighed. "_I called Rebekah this morning, but she assured me that Gwen was sleeping in after her encounter with Mikael the night before."_ He scoffed._ "Did you know that one of my sister's tells is that she rambles on about something in specific. She droned on about how excited she was for the Homecoming Dance and that she wanted Gwen to get us much rest as possible for the dance, so that's why she turned the phone off._"

"I am so out of the loop," Juniper groaned, irritated that she didn't know what was happening in Mystic Falls. "I _hate_ not knowing." The young witch despised lacking necessary knowledge, it was why she always strived to learn more about magic in order to know more about herself and the world she lived in as a witch, even when there was nothing left for her to learn. And knowing always helped her stay one step ahead of whatever was hurled her way, something that helped her survive when she was on her own. "It's frustrating. I'm kind of beginning to understand why you're so paranoid all the time."

"_Tell me about it_," Klaus mumbled. "_Something's off about all of this. I know the man I call father, and I can't imagine him being overpowered by a few baby vampires and a misplaced dagger_."

"What do you need me to do?" Juniper asked as she began to make her way to her office that was in a room at the back of the store, intent on getting her grimoire for whatever Klaus needed from her. "Do you need me in Mystic Falls?"

Klaus hummed. "_No, not yet. But I do need you to do a locator spell and find Gwen for me_." He released a heavy exhale. "_I need to know where she is and if she's all right_." It was nerve-wracking for him not being able to talk to Gwen and know if she was unharmed and nowhere near his father–daggered or not.

Juniper entered her office and went straight for the safe that was hidden behind a portrait Gwen made her of a dirt path that was almost gold going through a forest in the early morning with light filtering through the trees. She smiled at the gift before taking it off the wall to put it on the floor and against the wall. "It's gonna be a bit tricky getting a precise location without something to link me to her." She glanced at the painting but shook her head, since too much time had passed for the item to have any of Gwen's essence. She looked up at the wall and flicked her wrist before watching a section of the yellow wall dissolve into a safe. "I knew I should have taken some of her blood with me. It would have made things a whole lot easier," she scolded herself as she reached for the round lock and inserted the code that had the safe opening with a hiss.

"_No problem_," Klaus told her. "_Gwen always wears a bracelet I gave her that acts as a GPS of sorts when you use me or my blood_."

Juniper frowned at this. "That would only work if the item was still strong with your essence."

"_That is why I had a witch imbue the charm on the bracelet with my blood before giving it to Gwen_," Klaus explained.

"That is a bit messed up," Juniper countered, a bit put off that Klaus had a way to always know where the halfling was. "Does Gwen know about this?"

"_She knows it's a gift I gave her and that is all she needs to know. She might take it off in one of her tantrums if she were to know, and it's the only way to find her in an emergency, so keep your mouth shut_," Klaus said nonchalantly with a shrug of his shoulders.

Juniper sighed, "Again, messed up."

"_Focus_," Klaus chided. "_I know you still have some of my blood, so use that as a connection_."

"Anything else on your order, my good sir?" Juniper asked as she took her grimoire out of the safe, along with a vial that she filled with Klaus' blood from the last time he came to her store and asked her for a spell.

"_Why, yes_," Klaus said with a rather chipper voice.

.

Mystic Falls, Virginia

.

It was supposed to be a good day for Rebekah, but she felt no elation or giddy excitement at the prospect of the Homecoming Dance, the first ever event she would be attending where she could act and celebrate the way she should with the age she was forever frozen in. It didn't help that the night before had been too unsettling for her to get a good night's rest, given that she had co-signed her brother's death with people she couldn't stand. She felt even worse that she had drugged Gwen, the girl who appeared to be the only one on her side and wanted to help her with no ulterior motive, which was something she greatly appreciated. Still, she just couldn't get past her brother killing her mother.

And now that the only female Original vampire sat on a chair, painting a topcoat on her freshly painted toenails while watching over Mikael's desiccated body in the early morning, she was beginning to realize what she had done. Yes, Klaus killed their mother and she loathed herself for actually thinking that she somewhat understood him–their family was truly a living nightmare. Yet, Gwen's words still resonated within her, how _she_ should determine how to punish Klaus, not anyone else and certainly not her monster of a father.

Rebekah's eyes lifted from her freshly painted toenails to Mikael's prone body when her ears picked up on the familiar sound of blood being allowed to circulate through veins once again. She leaned back on her seat when she was done with her toenails and placed the nail polish on a nearby table as she watched her father's fingers begin to twitch before a gasp left him and his body convulsed as he coughed, sucking air back into his lungs as he gathered himself into a kneeling position. She steeled herself and wore a blank face, refusing to give him anything, not even the anger she still had for him. He may have not killed her mother, but he was the architect of her family's suffering and destruction.

"Finally," she spoke up, her voice causing Mikael's eyes to turn to her. She met his eyes without blinking, knowing that it was best to show strength while in the presence of her father. "Took you long enough," she taunted.

Mikael stared at his daughter, feeling a warm emotion he had not experienced for so long, but the look she was giving him disheartened him. "Rebekah," he whispered to make sure that it was not an apparition of his daughter that was in front of him. He couldn't remember when the last time was that he had spoken to her face to face.

"Whatever fatherly rubbish you're thinking, save it." She shook her head with pursed lips. "Nothing you say matters to me."

With a defeated nod, Mikael hummed. "I see." He knew better than to try to speak with his daughter. If even after finding out the truth she still looked at him with such resentment–because he knew that it was very difficult for his daughter to actually hate someone–then there was nothing he could say to lessen the bitterness she had for him. He climbed to his feet and looked around the room for a moment when he felt that something was missing. "Where's my dagger?"

"Elena has it, so you can forget your plans to use it on me," Rebekah answered with a sneer.

"You were never the one I was after," he told his daughter, still failing to comprehend the bond his children had with the illegitimate child of his deceased wife.

"Nik was my family," she argued, glaring up at her father. "If you were after him, you were after me."

Mikael took a deep breath to calm himself, for he never liked discussing Klaus, preferring to see him as nothing more than the abomination who ruined his family. "He blinded you, Rebekah. He killed your mother."

"I know what he did, but Nik was not born a killer, none of us were," Rebekah countered as she stood up to square up to her father with fiery anger now coursing through her body.

When she was but a child and filled with nothing but innocence, Rebekah admired Mikael for his dedication to his family. She wanted a man who had the same passionate dedication but focused on her, but that perfect image of her father disintegrated as the years went by. As memories of dark moments of her human life resurfaced, her eyes slightly widened as she came to terms with her actions and the person who she aligned herself with. This person who stood before her was not a good man. With every violent action focused on Klaus, with every derogatory comment and punishment her brothers had to endure, with every dismissal of comfort and care, her heart broke. And it was these thoughts that had her feeling like she had been doused with cold water that chilled her bones.

"We've only gotten to where we are now because of what _you_ did to us, setting us all down a dark path with no light to guide our way," she spat at her father, now growing angrier. She wished that this anger that she projected onto her father could be thrown at herself for how stupid she had been to think that it would have been a good idea to side with Mikael, but it was too late. It reminded her of a similar mistake she had once done in New Orleans. "_You_ destroyed our family, not him!" She didn't wait for him to reply and slammed her shoulder against his as she walked by him.

"Rebekah…" Mikael tried to respond, but she was already out of the room, and he knew better than to chase after her.

Unbeknownst to either Original, the startled figure of Juniper stared at the exchange with eyes wide with shock that stared at the patriarch of the Original family before she disappeared from the room without leaving behind any trace of herself.

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**End of chapter!**

**I know it was a bit of a filler, but it's a necessary one. After we are done with the whole Mikael debacle, I'll try to move things along a bit faster because I am just ecstatic to get to when the rest of the Originals are awakened.**

**I love and enjoy reading your reviews, so never fear to voice your opinions. You guys help center the story and make me a better writer, so review to your heart's content!**

**See you in the next chapter!**


	16. the girl raised by the monster

**Hello, lovelies! Sorry for the late update but things have gotten a bit hectic with work and studies. I worked hard on getting this chapter done and ready to be posted, which was also a bit difficult to write and give justice to the characters.**

**Now, to respond to your lovely reviews:**

**-_xenocanaan_: I am so happy that I could catch someone by surprise with such a turn! I hope you enjoy what comes next and everything that happens after!**

**-_TheLadyO_: Yeah, I couldn't really see Gwen betraying Klaus, since he's her father figure and she just can't find it in herself to betray him. Well, I am not going to spoil, so you'll have to read this chapter to find out! Things are gonna get a bit crazy here.**

**-_Guest_: I love writing interactions between a young Gwen and Klaus, so I always look for ways to add a little bit here and there. Also, I just couldn't see her betraying him, it's not who she is. Also, Rebekah will have to wait (fortunately for her) to hear what Klaus has to say about her drugging Gwen.**

**-_Love . Fiction . 2020_: ;D**

**-_Guest_: Since I like writing Klaus with a young Gwen, you'll definitely see more of those. I will show how it all began between Gwen and Klaus, but that revelation is for the future, since there isn't anything that's making Gwen question her origins and such, but it will happen and it'll be very important and a catalyst for the story later on. And I was honestly going to have Gwen remain as the best friend, but then a small image of Klaus being a father struck me and I began to run with it and it turned into this new relationship that ties them together as family. Oh, I am just as excited as you guys for Gwen and Kol to meet! We're so close! And yes, Klaus will be his usual overprotective self, but Gwen is also growing into her own person, so there's that.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing from The Vampire Diaries and claim no ownership over anything pertaining to it.**

* * *

_the girl raised by the monster_

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.

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"We can't trust Rebekah not to turn on us," Elena told Damon from where she stood at the foot of his bed where different types of weapons were laid on display, helping with the preparations for their plan, since they would need weapons capable of killing any number of hybrids Klaus was sure to bring with him. "And there's also Gwen to worry about." She had yet to see or hear the half-fae all day, which worried her, not wanting a problem to foil their carefully laid out plan. "Rebekah said she'd take care of it, but…"

"You don't say," Damon hummed with sarcasm dripping from his voice as he stood in his bathroom working on getting the few remaining stakes that he had left coated with wolfsbane he mixed with water in the washbasin. "Because these Original vampires are usually _so reliable_."

"Bonnie was right." Elena recalled her earlier conversation with her childhood friend before she made her way back to the Boarding House to help get everything ready for later in the night. Her talk with Bonnie helped her realize that no matter how mad Rebekah was at Klaus, he was still her brother above everything else. "Rebekah may be mad at Klaus now, but he is her brother," she sighed as she reached over the bed to grab a few stakes she needed to hook up to an armband that would be concealed beneath clothing. "They've spent a thousand years together. You don't get over that in one night."

Damon snorted. "Her lying, mama-killing, dagger-happy brother." He glanced at Elena when she came to his side. "Wolfsbane is ready."

Elena took a moment to steady herself with her hands gripping the edge of the marble countertop of the bathroom. "There are too many things that can go wrong with this plan," she exhaled with a groan, disliking the pit of dread that grew wider and wider in her stomach as time passed by. "Too many people that can make it go wrong."

"Well, I am formulating a secret contingency plan or two," Damon supplied as he began to set up the items needed to make a wolfsbane grenade.

Damon's revelation had Elena raising an inquisitive eyebrow at him. "Really?" she asked, suddenly becoming a bit more confident that things would go right with their plan. "What is it?"

Hearing footsteps approaching his room, Damon gave Elena a pointed look that had her frowning. "Well, if I told you, then it wouldn't be a secret."

Just then, Stefan entered his older brother's room and leaned against the bathroom's doorway. "I need to borrow a tie," he announced.

"You have your own ties," Damon countered, his eyes focused on his task.

Stefan hummed with a nod. "I'm 162 years old and I'm going to a Homecoming Dance," he huffed in annoyance. "I need better ties."

"You could not go," Elena suggested as she turned her attention to Stefan, finding it easier to look at him when her mind was too preoccupied being worried about facing Klaus than her problems with her compelled ex-boyfriend, which made it easier to talk to him.

"I don't know how many times I have to tell you that I am compelled to protect you. I wish I could sit this out, but I _can't_," Stefan told her and stressed out the last word, exasperated with having to repeat himself. He pointed a finger at Elena with an amused grin. "If I look at your track record at high school dances, it's pretty tragic. With my luck you'll go and get yourself murdered by the Homecoming Queen." He then left the room in search of a tie for his outfit for the night.

Elena rolled her eyes, annoyed that what Stefan said was true. Ever since she was sucked into the drama of the supernatural world, she had unbelievably bad experiences with any event related to dances or school activities or anything else that involves dressing up. Opting to ignore Stefan's remarks, she reached for a grenade to finish prepping it up, but her hand was slapped in a chastising manner that had her gasping and looking at Damon with an incredulous look.

Damon shook his head as he slowly took hold of the grenade she was assembling. "Uh-uh."

"I know how to do it," she argued as she tried to hold onto the deadly item. "Alaric taught me."

"Elena, if this thing blows up in our faces, just remember that only one of us heals quickly," Damon reminded her as he finally took the grenade from her hands.

"What are we going to do with Gwen?" Elena asked Damon, once again growing anxious with the number of loose ends that could derail their plan. "We still don't know what she's capable of and that makes her dangerous."

"I also have a plan for that," said Damon.

"Which you're not going to tell me," Elena stated.

With a grin, Damon told her, "Exactly."

Stefan returned to the bathroom with a few ties in his hands that he managed to find that were more to his liking, coming to stand behind Elena and Damon to stare at his options through the bathroom's mirror. "Please tell me that you have a better plan than wolfsbane grenades," he groaned when his eyes caught what his brother was working on with his ex-girlfriend, believing that a simple grenade wouldn't do much to hinder a hybrid.

"Never you mind, brother," Damon reassured his younger brother offhandedly. "The less you know the better."

"My freedom from Klaus rests entirely upon you two executing your plan perfectly. So, excuse me if I'm a bit cynical," Stefan remarked. "Also, I couldn't help but overhear your worries about Gwen, so don't elaborate further on your intentions, since I am also compelled to ensure her safety, but I can work around that so long as I am aware that Rebekah is around to watch over her." He knew that he didn't have to worry about Gwen's safety in any scenario with Rebekah watching over the halfling, which gave him a loophole to work with. "I have some advice on that," he told Damon. "Using Gwen against Klaus is not a good idea."

"Yeah, I reckon that also goes for Rebekah," Damon huffed, remembering how a glass had been smashed into his head the night before.

Elena hummed. "Makes you wonder how they stand by him." She recalled how Gwen spoke about the immortal hybrid and how protective the halfling was of him. "I think Klaus might genuinely care about Gwen."

Damon nodded in agreement, still focusing his attention on the weapons in his hands. "Oh, she's his Achille's heel all right."

"Just saying that it would be best to leave her out of this. I don't know how far Klaus is willing to go for her and I don't want to find out," Stefan said with his arms raised up in mock surrender. "I prefer not having to end up like Katherine, running for the rest of my immortal life." He then began to make his way out of the bathroom.

"We also have to worry about you," Elena spoke up, causing Stefan to stop by the doorway and turn to her. "If Klaus asks you one wrong question, whole thing falls apart."

Stefan nodded at this with a slight pout. "You do have reason to worry, but if I look back in our history of epic plan failures, it's usually because one of us let our humanity get in the way," he shot back at Elena. "So, if I'm taking odds on how this thing goes down, it's certainly not gonna be me who screws it up." He smirked at both Damon and Elena, the latter being the only one giving him their undivided attention, whereas the former simply continued to work on the grenades. "I'll see you at Homecoming," he told Elena and left the room while throwing over his shoulder, "I can't wait."

Elena watched Stefan leave the room and she found that she agreed with him. She looked back and Damon and hummed when she remembered that she had also seen Bonnie to ask her for a favor in Damon's place. "Here," she said as she reached into her pants' pocket, pulling out a small vial that contained a metallic, silver liquid. "Why did you want this?"

"We're gonna need this soon," Damon said as he grabbed the vial and inspected the contents, hoping that he got the amount right.

As everyone in the house worked on getting everything ready–not just for Klaus, but also for the Homecoming Dance–an occupant in the house was beginning to stir from her forced slumber.

Everything was groggy, like coming out of a heavy sleep that left one looking like they were dead to the rest of the world. This was how Gwen greeted the day as she awakened in the late afternoon with a groan, fighting to get away from the claws of slumber that tried to pull her back into a dreamless sleep. A whine escaped her pink lips as she rolled over onto her side, rubbing a hand over her face to try and get herself to wake up. She exhaled with a grunt as she sat up on her bed, her eyes fluttering open before they widened when her mind brought forth what she was doing before she fell unconscious.

Gwen looked around the dim room. She found that her phone was nowhere to be seen, leaving her without a way to call Klaus. She jumped from the bed and ran to her drawers to change into an outfit that did not consist of something she would wear to go to sleep. She quickly put on a light-yellow mini dress that had an allover floral print of multiple colors, a V-neckline, ruffled cap sleeves, self-tie back closure, back cutout, and a fit and flare silhouette. She matched the dress with black leggings and a pair of pair of faux suede booties in gray that had a stacked block heel that wasn't too high for her to run in them.

The only plan that Gwen could come up at the moment was finding another phone to contact Klaus and warn him about what was happening. She knew she couldn't overpower a house full of vampires that included two Originals, but she didn't have a lot of options. She wanted to help Klaus however she could, even if she was putting herself at risk. Besides, she figured there wasn't much point in trying to outrun a vampire, especially when there wasn't anywhere that she could go to. She couldn't risk trying to find the keys to a car, since she risked ending up getting caught.

Decided on her rocky plan, Gwen reached for her jean jacket that had gray sleeves and put it on before making her way to the door. She took care not to make too much noise as she opened the door and peeked out into the empty hallway, holding her breath as she surveyed the area. Once she was sure that the coast was clear, she stepped out of her temporary room and closed the door behind her with as little noise as possible, breathing a sigh of relief through her nose after a few moments passed and no one appeared. She quickly checked Rebekah's room, finding it empty with no said Original or a phone in sight, which left her with no choice but to use her magic.

Taking a deep breath with her eyes closed as she stood in the middle of Rebekah's room, Gwen focused on the familiar warmth of her magic that was deep within her abdomen and worked on stretching it outward as far as she could. She could feel the cold auras of Damon and Stefan that was characteristic of vampires somewhere on the first floor, noticing how there was a speck of warmth shining through every now and then. Her entire body shivered when she sensed the massive and chilling aura that belonged to who she assumed to be Mikael on the first floor as well, his atmosphere being similar but not quite to Klaus' and Rebekah's. It unnerved the halfling how strong the presence of the patriarch of the Original family was that had her thinking that it was the same as looking into an abyss of pitch black. She then focused on another aura with a huge presence; it wasn't as prominent as Mikael's and it had a shine to it. Finally, Gwen knew where Rebekah was.

The young half-fae opened her eyes and left Rebekah's room, her feet taking her to Stefan's bedroom with hurried but silent steps. Once she reached the stairs that would lead her up to the youngest Salvatore's room, Gwen took a deep breath to calm herself. She knew that if she couldn't convince Rebekah to listen to her pleas, then she would have to take the phone by force and hope for the best.

When Gwen reached the bedroom's doorway, her eyes widened in shock when they found Elena standing behind a smiling Rebekah staring at herself through the full body mirror in front of her, but what had seized the halfling's heart was the fact that Elena held a dagger to Rebekah's back. "Bekah!" she called out. Her body moved on its own when her hand glowed a minty green that generated a small ball of light that was hurled at Elena's hand that held the dagger, causing it to fall to the floor.

Elena hissed in pain as she cradled her right hand to her chest. The back of her hand was an angry red, as if she had been lightly burned. While it wasn't life-threatening, the skin stung.

Now that she was alert and her emotions were no longer in control, it was like a curtain had been lifted from Rebekah's eyes. The blonde Original allowed the gut feeling that had tried to warn her that something was wrong to engulf her, screaming at her that she was not safe. The look Elena gave her through the mirror–like a frightened animal caught in the trap of a predator–was enough for Rebekah to turn around and reach for the doppelgänger's arm. "You two-faced bitch!" she growled at Elena with her vampiric features in display. Rage grew in her belly, now understanding why Elena had been so kind to her moments ago. With a twist of her wrist, she bent the brunette's arm in an odd angle that elicited a guttural screech from the brunette. "And here I was starting to think that you'd be different from your ancestors," she snarled as she threw Elena against a wall, "but you're just the same. Pathetic, really."

Gwen stared at the fuming Rebekah towering over the cowering Elena. A yelp escaped the halfling when she felt a pinprick on her neck that had her recoiling. She reached up to her neck where and felt a slow burn beneath her skin as what was inserted into her body began to spread. She turned around with a frown when she found Damon with an empty syringe in his hand, a not-so-apologetic smile on his lips. She was unable to speak as she wrapped her hands around her throat when she felt like her throat was on fire. Her body was beginning to lose strength. She fell to her knees as whimpers escaped her and her head began to swim. She cursed internally when she realized that she was about to lose consciousness, hating how careless she had been.

Rebekah tore her gaze from Elena at the sound of Gwen's pained moans, her eyes widening when she saw the halfling fall to the ground with a thud. The Original turned her murderous gaze to Damon and wasted no time in speeding over to him and slamming him against a wall with a hand around his neck and the other breaking his forearm, which had him losing his grasp on the syringe, enjoying the sound his bone made when it was broken. Damon yelled out in pain as his left arm fell limp at his side.

"And here I thought we were just getting to some common ground," Rebekah began as she stared into Damon's eyes. She reminded herself that she couldn't compel him, since he drank vervain, so that left her with torture and beatings to get answers out of him. "What did you do to her?" she asked as she gestured to Gwen's limp form with a jerk of her head without taking her eyes off the oldest Salvatore.

"You know," Damon groaned when Rebekah tightened her left hand around his throat, "you would think it would be easy to get iron, but it's harder to get it into liquid form, so it took a while to get our witch to do me the favor of speeding up the process."

"Iron?" Rebekah gasped, her hold on Damon loosening in her shock. She was aware how dangerous that element was to faeries and hoped that she could get Gwen the help she needed.

Damon chuckled throatily. "Don't worry. It's not enough to kill her…I think." He really hoped that the amount he had Elena ask of Bonnie was not enough to kill the halfling, since he still needed her alive.

The Original in the red dress was not at all amused, so she slammed her right fist into Damon's chest and grabbed a hold of his heart, which had him dropping his grin when he realized that he was in a precarious situation. "I do so hate for those beautiful eyes of yours to close forever, but I think I'll prefer you dead to save myself any future headaches," she told him with a slight pout, her mind working on what her next move would be after killing Damon and Elena.

"I thought you were on the Let's-Kill-Klaus team," wheezed Damon.

"Well," Rebekah began as she squeezed Damon's heart, "I was thinking that if I'm to lose a brother tonight, then let's make it even."

Before Rebekah could pull her hand out of Damon's chest with his heart in her hand, a strangled gasp escaped her when a familiar cool and sharp object was shoved into her back, which had her releasing Damon as veins began to mar her graying skin. Rebekah took one step away from Damon and glanced over her shoulder to see Elena before everything became dark and her body fell limp on the floor.

Damon's right hand grabbed his left arm and set it back in place with a tightlipped groan escaping him, feeling the bone begin to heal. He took a few deep breaths as the hole in his chest knitted itself back together. "Well…that was easy," he remarked before making his way to Elena, gingerly taking her injured arm in his hands to inspect the damage. "It's not broken, but it's not pretty," he told her with a scrunched-up face, angry that she had gotten hurt. He glanced at her head and ran a hand over the back of it, pulling it back when she hissed when he found a bump. "Probably concussed, but it's nothing that a little vampire blood won't fix."

"I'm fine," Elena argued with a shake of her head, fighting through the pain she felt in her right arm, her upper back, and the back of her head. Her eyes watered from the pain she felt in her arm, feeling it emit throbbing pulses whenever she moved it. "Let's just get this over with."

Damon nodded as he glanced at Gwen's prone body. "One order of a half-breed with extra iron for Papa Original coming right up."

.

After his short speech, Klaus stepped off the stage that had been set up in the backyard of the Lockwood Mansion with a dancing crowd of people in front of it as a band played.

People were coming in and out of the mansion, having a good time. Among the mass of moving bodies were students of Mystic Falls High School who had to migrate their Homecoming Dance after the gym had been flooded with Tyler offering his home as a substitute, but the majority of the people were not there for the purpose of celebrating a high school dance.

The Original hybrid grinned as he stepped into the crowd, walking toward a familiar individual who caught his eyes. "Why, hello, old friend," Klaus greeted Stefan, raising his voice to speak over the crowd and music. "Having yourself a good time?" he asked with a smirk as he continued to walk around with Stefan by his side.

Stefan nodded, stuffing his hands in the pockets of his pants. "It's quite the Homecoming."

"I've been planning my father's funeral for a thousand years," said Klaus, exaggerating his words a bit. "Granted, in no version of it were any of these people invited, but you get the idea."

"So, what now?" Stefan asked the Original hybrid, needing to keep the conversation flowing to avoid any prodding questions. "Stop running?"

Klaus hummed in agreement as he came to a stop near the stairs that led up to the back entrance of the mansion. He turned to face Stefan and answered with, "Now I reunite my family."

"Your family." Stefan nodded with pursed lips. "You mean the people you cart around in caskets?"

"None of that matters anymore. Mikael's gone." Klaus smiled, paying rapt attention to Stefan's body language. "Bygones will be bygones." He raised an eyebrow when he saw the tiara meant for the Homecoming Queen on a girl who was not his sister, which reminded him of his problem and why he had Tyler move the Homecoming Dance to a place he had prepared for any situation he could imagine happening upon his return to Mystic Falls. "Seems the Homecoming Queen still walks among the living, which leads me to believe Rebekah isn't here." He looked back at Stefan with narrowed eyes. "Where is she?"

"I have no idea." Stefan raised his eyebrows and shrugged. "I thought she was coming with Matt."

Klaus then moved on to his next question. "And Gwen?"

"Last I heard, she was still sleeping off whatever your sister gave her," Stefan answered honestly.

"Oh, be honest now, Stefan," Klaus said with a look on his face that told the younger vampire that he was not satisfied by his simple explanations. "Where are Gwen and my sister?"

Stefan took a step closer to Klaus, his eyes and voice unwavering. "I said I have no idea. Now, would you like me to take you to your father?"

"Well, it wouldn't be a party without the guest of honor, would it?" Klaus chuckled before his smile dropped. "Bring him to me. And while you're at it, bring Gwen."

"All right." Stefan nodded as he released a heavy sigh that he hoped Klaus would take as him being annoyed, which he wasn't really faking. "Perhaps there's something in it for me?" Klaus raised an inquiring eyebrow. "My freedom from your compulsion."

Klaus grinned. "Oh, you want your freedom?" At Stefan's nod and impassive look, the hybrid continued. "Well, once Gwen is here by my side safe and sound, Mikael dead and his weapon destroyed, you'll have your freedom." With his dimples on display, he added, "It'll be my pleasure to give it back."

After watching Stefan take his leave to do what was asked of him, Klaus walked around and acquired a beer for himself before meeting up with Tyler to place a few subtle threats here and there, revealing the hybrids he had brought with him as backup. His intent was for his first hybrid to cause some internal conflict due to how the sire bond forced Tyler to want to please and ensure the safety of his creator. Once Tyler left him, he then turned his attention to the lone doppelgänger listening to the band on the backyard stairs.

"Where's your date?" Klaus greeted Elena as he came to stand in front of her.

With practiced ease, Katherine managed to keep her heart steady and her face schooled as she looked at Klaus head on, intent on playing her role as her mortal doppelgänger, whom she found too dull for her liking. "Getting me a drink," she answered Klaus.

Klaus offered his beer bottle but was met with a scowl that had him grinning. "Well, seems like I have you to thank for Mikael's demise, correct?"

Remembering the story that she was told, Katherine said, "He came at me." She shrugged, but she mentally cursed when she reminded herself to act more like her insipid descendant. "I didn't have a choice."

"Still, I'm impressed," said Klaus. "It's not easy for a human to dagger an Original."

"It wasn't the first time," said Katherine.

"Right. Elijah." Klaus nodded with a half-smirk. He frowned when he saw who he supposed was Elena tremble, even though she wore a coat over her body. And he also noticed how her eyes darted around anxiously. "You seem nervous."

"I'm not nervous. I just don't like you," Katherine countered with sass.

"Well, I'll get straight to the point then, shall I, love?" Klaus leveled Katherine with a stony look that drowned out everything around the immortal doppelgänger, taking her back to a time when she had been human and had a close encounter with the beast he was. She didn't want to imagine what he would do if he were to find out her true identity. "People have been after me for a thousand years, and I am always one step ahead. So, whatever it is you're thinking of trying, go for it, give it your best shot." He smirked at her. "You won't succeed."

"It won't be for lack of trying," Katherine scoffed and went to walk around the hybrid, but she froze when he stepped in her way.

"Now, you'd be smart to tell Damon to mind his manners tonight," Klaus warned her, catching her attention. "If I die or if Gwen's life is in any danger, I've already ensured that Damon will die as well." When Katherine's eyes furrowed, he added, "Even in death, my hybrids have their orders." He grinned. "You kill me or endanger Gwen, you'll be killing him too, along with a good portion of this town's population."

.

Gwen awakened with a groan and sore muscles after having been sleeping in an uncomfortable position, her eyes fluttering open from a sleep that was forced upon her for the second time within twenty-four hours. It was getting ridiculous and embarrassing for her when she knew she was capable of being more than the girl who was always put to sleep without putting much of a struggle. She frowned when she found herself in the backseat of a car with the left side of her body leaning on the door. Her head was pressed against the window, allowing her to see that it was already dark and well into the night.

Once her mind and vision cleared, Gwen hissed when she moved to straighten up against her seat, feeling that her blood was still burning under her skin, which left her sluggish. She reached up with one hand and rubbed her throbbing temple as tears threatened to spill over her cheeks from the amount of pain that she was in, her breathing a bit ragged. She had never been subjected to the effects of iron before, not like that. She had quite often unknowingly touched iron that burned her, it happened a lot when she was a child. A witch had once blown iron into her face that had her choking for breath, but this time was different. She had never been injected with liquid iron before. It was as if her body was made of lead.

"Good, you're awake," a voice to Gwen's right spoke.

Out of some instinct within her that told Gwen that she was in danger, she extended her hand out to her right with every intention of shooting out her magic at whoever spoke, but nothing happened, which perplexed her as she stared at her hand with furrowed brows. It was then that she realized that her magic was unable to manifest, as if something were weighing it down.

"I must say…" the man spoke up again, startling Gwen. "You have good reflexes, but they are rather slow. Although, I can't really blame you, since it's probably the iron still running through your veins."

Gwen sucked in a breath and pushed herself back against the door she had been leaning on in fright, her body becoming deathly still when her eyes landed on the man standing outside of the car with the door open as he stared at her by leaning his head down a bit. He appeared to be middle-aged but with a muscular build with short, dark blond hair and blue eyes. And though she had never seen his face before, Gwen recognized his aura and knew that he was someone she shouldn't push her luck with, which was why she wanted to be as far away from him as possible.

"Do you know why your kind has such a weakness?" Mikael asked Gwen, his hands stuffed in the pockets of his dark dress pants. When he was met with silence, he continued. "The story is that the first faerie who was murdered had been stabbed through the heart with an iron sword, thus cursing the metal as a faerie killer for all time." He noticed Gwen's tense posture and wide eyes. "I see that I need no introduction."

Gwen merely scowled at him, staying alert for any sudden movements that he could make. She noticed that there was a mansion some feet away from where the car was parked by taking a glance outside over his shoulder. "Not really," she told him, surprised that her voice remained steady. "Where's Rebekah?" she asked, worried about the blonde, since she last saw the female Original towering over Elena.

"I have no idea," said Mikael, his eyes narrowing. "Your care for vampires is rather confusing, given your race." It honestly confused the patriarch of the Original family how a half-fae could want to spend time with vampires, beings that have only ever used her own kind for food. But what baffled him even more was the fact that Klaus had taken her in and raised her. "I fail to see what Niklaus gains by having taken you in."

"I fail to see what's so confusing for you," Gwen spat in return, absentmindedly wondering where she was getting her courage to speak to such a dangerous man as she did. "What, is it disappointing to know that your children aren't as terrible as you thought them to be?"

Mikael chuckled. "You have some fire in you. I can see the fear, but you're not letting it overpower you." He nodded once. "I'm quite impressed. Let's see if you'll be able to keep up the brave front for what I have planned." He cleared his voice and called out, "Mindy, if you please."

Gwen didn't have time to do or think anything, yelping when the door behind her was opened and her weary body was yanked out of the small sense of safety she found inside the car. She looked up at the person handling her none too gently, finding a rather attractive young woman who had glistening dark skin that went well with her dark brown hair of medium length. She had a slim build and was two inches taller than Gwen. The halfling realized that the air around the woman reminded her a bit of Klaus, causing the young hybrid to frown when she realized that the woman who had a vice grip on her arm was a werewolf-vampire hybrid.

"Come along," Mikael spoke up.

Mindy did as she was told and dragged Gwen along with her to follow Mikael, all of them making their way to the Lockwood Mansion. It had been a short walk, but by the time they had reached the front door of the large home, Gwen wanted to collapse. It didn't help that she tried to summon her magic every few seconds, checking to see if she could at least use a bit of her power, which tired her further as she tried to fight through the effects that the iron caused in her body. They soon reached the front of the mansion and Mikael checked if he could enter the premises, sighing when he found the invisible barrier that kept uninvited vampires from entering private property.

Mikael turned to Gwen and Mindy before grabbing the former's bicep in a firm hold. He locked eyes with the female hybrid and commanded, "_Fetch my bastard son_." His comment infuriated Gwen, making her wish she could burn his skin for speaking of his son like that. "_Tell him his old friend Mikael is here for a little chat. Come back after you deliver the message_. I still have need of you."

Mindy merely nodded at Mikael before disappearing into the house, unable to do anything else after having been compelled to do everything he asked of her.

"What are you going to do?" asked Gwen, looking up at him from the corner of her eyes. "He won't come out."

"Maybe not, but I imagine that you'd give him enough reason to do so," Mikael told her just as Mindy returned. He handed Gwen to Mindy once more and had them standing away from the open front doors, while he stood as close as he possibly could to the entrance's doorway.

The Original Vampire Hunter didn't have to wait long for Klaus to make his appearance as he watched people begin to exit the home and be taken to the backyard. The Original hybrid stepped up to the entrance in a few minutes but staying a safe distance within the boundary of the mansion that helped keep his father outside of the premises.

"Hello, Niklaus," Mikael greeted his illegitimate child, maintaining an impassive look on his face.

"Hello, Mikael," Klaus greeted in return, steeling himself for whatever his father had in store for him.

Klaus gave his father a onceover in search of the weapon Juniper told him about in a text. She had informed him of what she saw by projecting her astral form to Mystic Falls to spy on his enemies some hours ago, telling him what the weapon looked like and confirming that Gwen really was asleep. It was a good way for him to be prepared for anything, which was why he was not at all surprised to know that Stefan found a way to lie to him with the help of his brother and friends.

The hybrid needed to keep himself cool and collected by keeping his hands from shaking and his eyes focused on Mikael's, knowing how his father thrived when his opponents showed any form of weakness that he could take advantage of. "Won't you come in?" He paused with a small grin. "Oh, that's right. You can't."

"Or you can come outside if you want," Mikael suggested, even though he knew Klaus would never step foot out of the house to meet his challenge.

"Or I could watch my hybrids tear you limb from limb." Klaus met Mikael's challenge with his own as a group of his hybrids gathered in the front yard behind Mikael. "The beauty of having a witch on my side is the many skills she has, like being my little spy even from miles away. I wasn't shocked when she told me how you staged being daggered, since the story lacked the usual bloodshed and piles of bodies."

"Yes, I knew I should have killed one of the Salvatore boys, make it more convincing. Still, you're here." Mikael gave Klaus an unimpressed look. "And you do know that your hybrids can't kill me, right?"

"True." Klaus smirked as he added, "But it'll make a hell of a party game." He raised a hand and had his middle finger meet his thumb. "All I have to do is rub these two fingers together and they'll pounce."

"The big bad wolf," Mikael taunted with his own smirk, watching as Klaus dropped his hand. "You haven't changed." He shook his head, not at all surprised to find Klaus hiding behind someone, much like he did when he was younger and always tried to take cover behind his siblings. "Still hiding behind your playthings like a coward. You only forget," he began to explain. "They may be sired by you, but they're still part vampire." He glanced at Mindy and gestured for her to stand closer with Gwen before meeting Klaus' gaze. "And they can be compelled by me."

Mindy took two steps toward Mikael with Gwen. The halfling struggled to stay rooted in place to keep herself from being used against Klaus, but Mindy was strong enough to move her without much trouble. Gwen gasped when she was given to Mikael, her eyes meeting Klaus', which brought tears to her eyes as the situation she found herself in finally began to sink in. She could die. And while she didn't want to die, she didn't want Klaus to die because of her. He was her family. She didn't know what she would do if she lost him.

For the first time in a long time, Klaus felt his heart stop when his eyes landed on Gwen, his mouth falling open in shock. It was a feeling he couldn't describe. It was as if all air had left him and his blood had turned ice-cold. He had believed that Gwen was safe with Rebekah, knowing that his sister had a kindness in her heart that would have endeared her to the halfling, enough that Klaus was sure that his sister would have done anything to protect Gwen. His sister knew very well the kind of monster their father was and would have never let Gwen be anywhere near Mikael, which told him that something had happened to Rebekah. And now he was living a nightmare he never wanted to experience.

Klaus' one weakness was in the hands of his tormentor.

"Nik," Gwen whispered, her voice snapping him out of his mind that scrambled to find a solution to get the young halfling away from his father. "I'm sorry." For letting herself end up in her current predicament.

"Honestly," Mikael huffed as he tightened his grip on Gwen's arm, but she bit her lower lip to keep herself from making a sound, refusing to give him the satisfaction. "I have yet to comprehend how you got someone to care for you. I can see in her eyes such devotion for someone who doesn't deserve it."

"What do you know about caring for someone other than yourself?" Gwen scoffed at Mikael over her shoulder.

"She's got a fire in her," Mikael chuckled as he faced Klaus. "Now, come out and face me, Niklaus. Or I will snuff out her life like blowing away the flame of a candle."

"Don't you dare!" Klaus snarled at Mikael as he shifted from one foot to another, his hands itching to wrap themselves around his father's neck and tearing it off his shoulders.

Gwen shook her head at Klaus when she saw him begin to take a step forward and shouted, "Don't!"

Mikael couldn't help but smirk when he saw the rage and fear in Klaus' eyes, which told him that he finally had the hybrid in a position where he couldn't run away as he always did. "I debated on whether I should have used the doppelgänger, since she's the one who makes it possible for you to make more of your abominations." He squeezed Gwen's arm once more, eliciting a pained gasp from her. "Then I thought that there would be nothing more terrifying for you than losing the one person who has such pure and naïve love for you."

Klaus' face morphed as his eyes turned into golden orbs surrounded by a pool of black with dark veins protruding beneath them. "If you harm her, I will tear you apart until you're nothing more than chunks of meat to feed to strays." He kept his eyes on Mikael, considering shifting into his wolf form. He needed an opening to get Gwen away from his father's grasp.

"To what end, Niklaus?" Mikael questioned the Original hybrid. "If she dies, you'll live eternity alone. Nobody else cares about you anymore, boy!" he shouted at Klaus, growing impatient. "She's the only one whose loyalty you haven't forced. Are you willing to lose that by letting her die by my hand?"

Klaus' tear-filled eyes glanced at Gwen, watching her shake her head at him with a small smile and a look on her face that told him that she was willing to do anything for him, even giving up her life for him. "This is your last warning, _Father_," he growled at Mikael as his canines sharpened. "I won't ask again."

"Nik, don't!" Gwen half-sobbed, a few tears falling from her eyes as she grew even more afraid for Klaus' life. She knew that Mikael had something up his sleeve with the rest of the supernatural residents of the town, and it frustrated her not knowing what it was so that she could warn Klaus. "Please!" she pleaded Klaus. "Stay inside."

"Atta boy! Where has this beastly warrior been all this time?" Mikael grinned as he watched Klaus' monstrous features manifest, hearing bones begin to crack and seeing fur growing along the sides of his face. "Your impulse has and will forever be the one thing that keeps you from truly being great, and it will be the reason why you'll watch her die, much like how I had to watch my wife die at your hands."

Gwen's eyes widened when she saw Klaus begin to advance on Mikael with a snarl. "No!" she shouted as she lifted a hand enveloped by a glowing, green mist that threw a small ball of light at Klaus that pushed him some feet back into the house before he could take a single step outside.

Time stopped for Gwen when she felt something thin and cold be jammed on the right side of her lower back, causing her to gasp and scream out when pain exploded where Mikael had embedded a dagger. She was already in so much pain from the iron still burning in her blood that her legs could no longer hold her up, so she fell on her knees with her right hand hovering over where the dagger was still wedged in her body. She could barely breathe without sending a jolt of pain throughout her body with every breath she took. She resisted the allure of giving into her body's demand to lose consciousness in an attempt to escape the pain she was experiencing, but she fought against it.

"No!" Klaus raged and climbed to his feet to speed over to Gwen, but his body was twisted in the air before being slammed into the floor by Damon.

The oldest Salvatore knew he was on borrowed time and that he was only able to overpower Klaus by taking advantage of his emotional state, so he quickly stabbed the stake Mikael had given him that had been made from the white oak tree, causing Klaus to scream out in pain. He was so focused on ending Klaus' life quickly that he failed to properly aim the stake at the hybrid's heart, having shoved it some inches beneath Klaus' beating organ.

Gwen mustered enough strength to send another ball of her magic at Mikael that slammed him against the wall of the house. He crumbled to the floor with a groan as his skin sizzled after being exposed to the strong light of Gwen's magic.

Just then, a blur appeared behind Mindy and snapped the hybrid's neck. Katherine smiled down at the panting Gwen, taking a deep breath of the delectable scent that only a faerie emitted. She shook her head as her mouth began to water, reminding herself that she had a task to do. "Would have loved to take a bite, but I'm in a time crunch," she said to the halfling.

Mikael frowned at the newly arrived vampire he recognized, already on his feet. "Katherine."

Katherine grinned as she took out two wolfsbane grenades from her coat and turned to face the advancing hybrids. "Kaboom," she sang before she threw the prepped grenades in the air, watching them explode and rain down the liquid that was toxic to the undead werewolves, halting them in their tracks. She glanced at Gwen over shoulder. "Nice meeting you," she said before disappearing.

Mikael then turned his attention to Gwen and grabbed her by the neck before lifting her with one hand without trouble. "Let's try this again," he snarled at the halfling who held onto his wrist as she fought to breathe. He took out the knife in her back, the action causing Gwen to whimper before she was thrown on the ground.

Inside the house, Damon took out the stake and aimed it at Klaus' heart, but he didn't have a chance to end the hybrid's life due to a body that knocked him off the Original hybrid and caused him to lose his grip on the white oak stake. The oldest Salvatore brother was shocked when he found that it was Stefan holding him down. "What are you doing?" he snarled at his younger brother.

If he was being honest, Stefan didn't really know what he was doing. The only thing that was running through his head were Katherine's words when she had woken him up after Mikael fed on him. All he could think about was how Damon would be dead if Klaus died, and then his body just moved on its own.

Klaus' dark blue-green eyes looked at Mikael and found him towering over Gwen with his dagger raised, ready to plunge it into Gwen's heart. The Original hybrid's eyes fell on the deadly stake as he stood up and didn't hesitate to pick it up before speeding over to Mikael, slamming his father into the ground and driving the stake through his heart. Klaus stood back up just in time to see his father release a gurgled scream as the stake burst into flames that engulfed his body, slowly turning it into ashes.

Once he was satisfied that Mikael would not be getting up, Klaus turned away from his father's corpse and quickly made his way to the mansion's porch where Gwen was still on the ground with a hand over the wound on her back. He knelt beside her and placed a hand on her shoulder, startling her. "It's just me," he whispered as he gave her a small smile. "It's all right."

Gwen couldn't hold back anymore and gasped as she began to sob from all the stress that had accumulated in her body. She had been drugged, betrayed, hurt, stabbed, and almost killed in such a short span of time that her mind and heart couldn't keep up. Her emotions couldn't even begin to process where to start to understand everything that happened in the last twenty-four hours, which resulted in her bursting into tears and choked sobs. "Dad," she hiccupped as she wrapped her arms around Klaus' neck, failing to notice the name that escaped her and had only used a few times.

Klaus breathed a sigh of relief as he wrapped his arms around her and buried his nose on the top of her head, breathing in her scent as he made sure that she was alive, if only a bit worse for wear. He couldn't help but smile warmly at how she addressed him after having been the one to tell her not to call him that; not because he had a problem with it, but because he couldn't take the risk of an enemy hearing her call him as such and using her against him.

"I've got you," Klaus mumbled as he hoisted Gwen into his arms and held her close, apologizing when he heard her whimper from the pain. He stepped inside the mansion to find Stefan still holding Damon down.

"What the hell did you do?" Damon hissed at Stefan.

"He's earned his freedom," Klaus spoke up.

Stefan got off the outraged Damon and turned to Klaus before approaching him.

"Thank you, my friend," Klaus said to the young vampire as they locked eyes with one another, a requirement when compulsion was involved. "_You no longer have to do as I say. You're free_."

The youngest Salvatore closed his eyes when he took in a sharp breath that he exhaled in relief when he felt his body become lighter as the compulsion finally lifted. Stefan opened his eyes and turned to look at where Damon had been on the floor but found his brother gone, leaving him alone.

Klaus left Stefan and made his way out of the mansion, making his way to his car while walking through his healed hybrids with an exhausted Gwen, intent on taking her to the hospital. The older hybrid glanced down at the girl in his arms whose eyes were beginning to droop and smiled, feeling like a weight had been taken off his shoulders.

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**End of chapter!**

**Wow! Finally, we're done with Mikael and ready to start the next part that will finally lead us to the rest of the Mikaelson siblings and the much-awaited meeting of Gwen and Kol! I'm so excited to write them together, but I do have to say that things will be different, since I am taking my time developing these characters and do them justice for you all to enjoy.**

**I loved your reviews and I can't wait to hear what you all thought about this chapter! I'll take anything you guys have, so don't be afraid to share your opinions.**

**Also, I love you all for the Faves and Follows. I didn't think so many people would be interested, so I will work hard to keep earning that love.**

**See you guys in the next chapter!**


	17. home sweet home

**Hello, lovely readers! I apologize profusely for the delay, but things are a bit hectic with work and studying, so it's taking me a bit of time to do a little proofreading before publishing. I assure you all that there are chapters that have already been written and completed, but need a little polishing, which is what takes more time out of me.**

**Nevertheless, I love the support and love you guys give to this story. I hope I am worthy of it.**

**Now, let's respond to those amazing reviews:**

**-_ArtemisLuna85_: Yes, I decided to add that little slip. I was a bit on the fence about it, but I found that the moment needed it, especially to mark the kind of relationship they have. Also, I don't want the main cast of the show to come out unscathed in every encounter with other supernatural beings stronger than them, so expect a bit more accuracy in terms of vampire strength and such than what the series showed. And sorry for keeping Rebekah daggered; it still happened. Also, thanks for the love!**

**-_xenocanaan_: I hated myself for doing that to Gwen, but I can't have her coming out free from harm and everything going her way, not when going up against beings much stronger than her (I am deathly afraid of making her too Mary-Sue-ish). Yeah, the group of Mystic Falls never do think about the consequences, so I am going to create the adequate consequences (I hope).**

**-_Guest_: Yes, I just had to add that little thing in there. I was so worried it didn't fit, but I am glad it was well received. Just to spoil a little bit, this won't be the last time she'll call him "dad". I also want to cement their relationship, since (as you mentioned) they are father and daughter. I made their circumstances much different than his with Marcel, looking to make it unique on its own. And do look forward to a doting Klaus in the future, be it in the present or in flashbacks.**

**-_Lavender Queen_: Yes, Klaus and Gwen are together, but things won't be smooth for a while (sorry for the spoiler), but you'll see what I mean in this chapter. Don't worry, Rebekah won't be getting off free from her stunt. Yes, Gwen is a very sweet girl, but she has her limits. Trust me, Klaus won't tolerate those stunts. I mean, Gwen can die and she can't be turned into a vampire. There are risks here that they can't overlook. Stay tuned for the Gwen and Kol meeting, you know it's coming up!**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing from The Vampire Diaries and claim no ownership over anything pertaining to it.**

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_home sweet home_

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It had been a dreadful twelve days for one Gwen Moone, having spent them inside a hospital room with a stab wound on her lower back that was still tender to the touch.

"I hate hospitals, and I especially hate their food," Gwen mumbled with her eyes closed as her fingers unconsciously toyed with her pearl necklace, her head resting against the passenger's cushioned seat. She was glad that she could finally leave the confines of her hospital room, having endured Klaus' strict monitoring and overprotective behavior with his hybrids standing guard outside her room.

Klaus smiled as he drove. "You're talking to me again, are you?"

Gwen opened her eyes and glanced at him with narrowed eyes. "I've been in the hospital for more than a week. I think that's long enough of a silent treatment for having lied about your mother's death and for testing my sanity." She hissed when she moved to lean her left side on the seat to get a better look at him, the movement aggravating the wound on her back that had been stitched closed. She had been so relieved when the itchy stitches were replaced by surgical tape closures before she was discharged. "Ow," she breathed out when her throat no longer felt like it was being stifled by the pain coming from her wound.

"You okay?" Klaus asked the young halfling, taking a quick look at her before turning his attention back to the road.

Nodding her head in reassurance, Gwen said, "I'm fine, I just find it a bit uncomfortable to sit with a stab wound in my back." She offered Klaus a reassuring smile.

While Mikael had failed to hit any vital organs and her wound was on the mend, it was still a struggle for Gwen not to put all her weight on her back when sitting or doing other activities that were a strain on her wound. It was an even bigger challenge to sleep on her left side without accidentally falling on her back, which had happened a few times and resulted in her rising to a sitting position with a yelp due to the pain that pulsed from her wound and spread throughout her body.

"Besides, whatever Bekah plans to do to you will be much worse, so you have enough on your plate already," she told the older hybrid, combing her fingers through her hair before braiding it to let it rest on her right shoulder with her short bangs swept to the side.

"Don't remind me," Klaus huffed, not at all ready to deal with an infuriated Rebekah.

"Not that I have any business meddling, but you shouldn't have lied about what actually happened to your mother," Gwen mumbled, feeling a bit awkward talking about such a sensitive topic that she knew he never liked talking about. "I'm not going to judge you. It's just that it's all a bit hard to swallow," she quickly added as she dropped her gaze to her hand twiddling with the pearl on her necklace.

The halfling thought that no one could really pass judgment on any of the Originals, not when they had lived more lifetimes than anyone else with so much history filled with too many ups and downs, so she couldn't even begin to imagine how that affected them psychologically. Yes, they had done many horrible things, but Gwen thought that so did every other vampire, no matter how hard they tried to be good. It jarred her to find out that Klaus killed his own mother, but not as much as she thought it would. She was still processing the information, struggling to come to terms with the truth. Still, she found that that she wasn't angry at Klaus or anything of the sort, believing that it was _his_ siblings who had every right to feel furious. As for herself, she really didn't think she had any right to meddle in something that happened a thousand years ago and did not directly affect her in any way.

Gwen exhaled a deep sigh. "Your family has a lot of history with too many messy parts to even begin to truly understand you all, but you should have told your siblings the truth."

Taking a deep breath to calm an uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach, Klaus glanced at Gwen and said, "And risk losing the only allies I had back then?"

"They're your family," Gwen argued, understanding where he was coming from. She knew that Klaus would have done anything to _not_ be alone, even if it meant lying to his family about the real reason that they had to run from place to place for a millennium. "You could have spent the last thousand years working through what you did with them, but now it's an even bigger mess. You and I both know that it's never good to try and block the sun with your thumb."

"Can we talk about this later?" Klaus was not at all interested in talking about the dysfunction that was his family, especially when he was more focused on finding them. "I'm not in the best mood to discuss my family."

"Fine," Gwen whispered, knowing better than to push him. "Have you found Bekah?" she asked Klaus, growing worried for her missing friend as more time passed. "I last saw her at the Salvatore's, so they have to know where she is."

"I know they know where she is, but I can't go killing all of the idiotic lot people of this town, not when I can use them to get to Stefan," Klaus told her as his hand that gripped onto the steering wheel tightened due to the frustration he felt.

"Do you think Stefan also has Rebekah?" asked the halfling.

"Probably. If my sister knows I killed our mother, she would have made sure I knew of her anger," said Klaus. "Which means that she's most likely been daggered."

Gwen hummed as her eyes fell to her hands that were fidgeting with the light pink maxi skirt that she wore that had high slits on the sides and a flowy silhouette, which she paired with a wide-ribbed, heather gray sweater that had a V-shaped neckline and dropped long sleeves. "And there's no sign of Stefan anywhere?" she asked, recalling how Klaus vented about losing his coffins in her hospital room the day after she had been admitted, but she vaguely remembered due to the strong painkillers she was on.

"He must've crawled into a very small and dark hole," Klaus almost growled, glaring at the road.

"And no one knows where he is?" she scoffed. "I find that kind of hard to believe."

"My thoughts exactly. Before picking you up at the hospital, I paid a visit to the doppelgänger and her boyfriend-to-be at the Grill, acquiring more eyes and ears in the search for the wayward Salvatore," the Original explained, smirking to himself. "When that didn't work, I gave them a little bit of motivation."

"Motivation, you say?" Gwen hummed while nodding before raising an eyebrow at him. "In other words, you either threatened or killed someone."

"Bit of both," Klaus said, grinning.

"Well, have you asked June to do a locator spell?" she suggested.

"I did, but she's having trouble trying to locate them. She said that it's probably because of a cloaking spell she can't work around, not from so far away. I told her not to bother and just focus on getting her things sorted," Klaus explained. He then raised his eyebrows as he glanced at Gwen. "By the way, she asked me to tell you to take it easy for the next few days or she's going to come down here and strap you to a bed. I assured her that wouldn't be necessary since I am going to be doing just that."

Gwen exhaled a tired groan as she leaned her head against her seat. After she had been stitched and the drugs that she was subjected to lost their groggy effect on her, the young halfling received threats of confinement or being sent to a nunnery by both Klaus and Juniper, a tag team that Gwen hadn't seen coming. Between Juniper's calls and Klaus' monitoring, the half-fae felt like she was going to lose her mind, even more so when being stuck in a hospital room with a stab wound on her back that kept her from trying to escape their overbearing worry. "You guys are being ridiculous," Gwen sighed with a shake of her head as she turned her gaze to the road and the afternoon sky.

"I beg to differ," huffed Klaus.

Turning back to stare at Klaus, Gwen knew that he was still unsettled by what happened the night he killed Mikael. She reached for his right hand that rested on the gear shift and pulled it onto the center console, holding it between both of her own hands. "I'm fine, Nik," she reassured him with a soft smile that he glanced at for a moment. He squeezed her hand in return and seemed to release some of the tension in his shoulders. "I'm alive, if only a bit bruised."

"Stabbed," he corrected.

"Details," she said offhandedly, rubbing her thumb on the back of his hand to offer him some comfort after what they had gone through. "It's all behind us, so let's focus on that. You no longer have to run."

"Finally," Klaus sighed, managing a lopsided smile. "Mikael is dead." His eyes darkened as his hand stiffened in between both of hers. "Of course, Stefan had to ruin the celebration before it even started." He had been looking forward to un-daggering his siblings without the fear of Mikael looming over them with the truth of what happened to the Original witch, but that was obviously not happening anytime soon due to the youngest Salvatore's bold move of stealing the coffins where he stored his family. "This town really is a bloody nightmare. If it's not one thing, then it's another," he grumbled.

Gwen chuckled in her throat. "Well, it seems to thrive in drama," she said before turning her attention to the road, frowning when she saw that they were entering the driveway of a rather luxurious mansion that the halfling couldn't help but find glamourous. "Where are we?" she asked Klaus, letting go of his hand to turn to her window and stare at the enormous home he parked in front of.

"Our new home," Klaus answered as he took the keys out of the ignition.

A surprised Gwen whipped her head and locked eyes with Klaus. "Seriously?" She raised an eyebrow at him. "In this town where we burned all the bridges with our neighbors?"

"Seriously." Klaus nodded with a grin. "Besides, things will be quite interesting with our good neighbors keeping us on our toes."

With nothing in mind but a comfortable bed to lie down on, Gwen opened her door of her side of the car, the action causing Klaus to leave the car and appear in front of the younger hybrid in a blink of an eye to help her. She gave him a grateful smile when he took her left hand with his own left and wrapping his right arm behind her back to grasp her right elbow to help her find her balance on unsteady feet that have not been used too much in the past week. She took a deep breath and fought through the slight pain on her back, nodding at Klaus when she was sure that she wasn't going to topple over.

"I had one of my hybrids get you some herbs so that you can speed up the healing process. I think he put them in the kitchen," Klaus told her, now only giving her his right elbow to hold onto before slowly making his way toward the mansion so as to not cause her any discomfort.

"That's good," Gwen sighed as they stepped up to the front doors. "I would very much like to start doing yoga again without opening my wound and bleeding all over the mat." She hadn't done any of her exercises that she tried to do daily and in a relaxed environment, something she did not have in the Salvatore Boarding House.

Klaus chuckled as he opened the door and had them step inside the mansion before closing the front door behind him. Gwen would have stared in awe of the spacious foyer, but she frowned when her ears met the noise of construction going on in a room to her right, which had her looking up at him with a questioning gaze.

"I bought the place a few days ago and thought it needed some remodeling. I had the men working double time, so it's almost finished," Klaus explained as he led them to a room that was barren of any furniture and only filled with tools on top of a table, since it was still being worked on by compelled construction workers who filtered in and out of the room.

Gwen raised an eyebrow at Klaus, knowing that the workers were under his compulsion. "Tell me that you're at least paying them what they deserve."

"I may be a hybrid, but I am not a monster," he told her with mock hurt on his face, but he only received an unimpressed look. "Rest assured that they're getting more than double of their pay."

"Good," said Gwen.

"What do you think?" he asked her, glancing down at her before frowning at the room's windows. "I designed a bit of the renovation."

"Well, it sure is big," said Gwen, not at all surprised by the extravagance of the place, since all the other homes they've lived in have also been quite large. "I like it." She smiled up at him, receiving a proud smile from him in return. "It's beautiful."

Just then, Mindy appeared in the room and approached Klaus. "You're back," she greeted her sire before she turned to Gwen, her eyes softening. "I'm sorry for what happened. I had no control over my actions."

"It's okay. You were compelled, so don't worry about it," Gwen assured the werewolf-vampire with a soft smile of understanding. "I mean, we were both at the mercy of a homicidal vampire hunter with a lot of issues."

"Good. You both made nice and bonded over a shared near-death experience." Klaus grinned between both women. "Now, Mindy, compel the men to open up this wall," he paused as he gestured to the windows in the room with his left hand that Gwen wasn't using as support. He disliked how little light was filtering into the room. "We need sun. I want a fortress, not a dungeon."

With a blank stare, Mindy nodded and turned around to leave the room to do as Klaus asked of her, which had Gwen's brows furrowing, finding it odd how robotic the female hybrid sounded and acted when Klaus spoke. Still, the halfling was too tired to think too much of it and opted to leave it for another moment when she wasn't craving nothing but a bed.

"Please tell me that my room is done," she groaned as she turned her hopeful eyes to Klaus who grinned down at her.

"Don't worry. You room was one I made a priority," he told her, earning a sigh of relief from the half-fae. "I even picked up all of your things from that dreary place the Salvatore brothers call their home. Damon was kind enough to show me where your things were when I visited him earlier. I just need to get them out of the trunk of the car." He reached into one of the back pockets of his pants and pulled out her phone, handing it over to her. "I also found your phone."

Gwen raised her eyebrows and smiled, relieved that she didn't have to get a new one and that she didn't lose her data. "Thank you so much."

"No problem. I know how important your photos are," said a smiling Klaus as he turned them around to go back to the foyer.

"You know, I thought you'd be angrier after everything that's happened." Gwen found it odd that the town was still standing, what with the plot to kill him and the robbery of his family. "Nothing's on fire and there isn't a bonfire of corpses in the front yard."

Klaus couldn't help but chuckle at how well she knew him. "Yes, well, I thought that many working ants are better than none to look for Stefan."

"Of course," Gwen sighed as he directed her to the stairs that would take them to the second floor, but the front door opening had them turning their attention to the entrance to find a familiar face.

The Original hybrid smirked at the new arrival. "There he is," he greeted Tyler with a wide grin that showed his dimples. "It's the man of the hour."

"So, everything went okay?" Tyler asked Klaus, sporting a grim look on his face with tense shoulders and hands deep in his pants' pockets.

"Tony ran down Alaric instead of Jeremy, but…apples, oranges," Klaus exhaled with a nonchalant shrug of his shoulders. "Message lands the same."

"Wait." Gwen frowned at Klaus. "You had someone run over someone else?"

"It was that motivation we were talking about earlier," Klaus told her.

Tyler frowned at Klaus, his gut turning unpleasantly at the thought of having caused his friends any harm. "You said you were sending them a warning."

"And I did, an effective one," Klaus told Tyler with cold eyes that held no sympathy for the inner turmoil within his first hybrid. "Elena's family suffers, she is motivated to get me what I want."

"I didn't think that we actually have to kill anyone," Tyler said with a shake of his head.

Klaus stepped away from Gwen and approached Tyler while releasing a heavy sigh. "Tyler, mate," he began while placing his hands on the younger werewolf-vampire hybrid's shoulders. "What you are feeling is the remnant of a guilty conscience. I need you to get over it, okay?" His tone of voice was as if he was speaking to a toddler.

"Seriously?" Gwen scoffed, resenting Klaus' remark.

The Original rolled his eyes, an action only Tyler saw. "End of the day, human life is just a means to an end. Our means to our end," he told Tyler, ignoring Gwen. He then removed his hands from Tyler's shoulders and turned the Lockwood hybrid to direct him to the front door. "You do well to remember that." He motioned for Tyler to step out of the mansion, and so the hybrid did. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to look after sweet Gwen who is now in a foul mood. Good work today." He closed the door without waiting to hear anything else Tyler had to say before turning around to face a scowling Gwen.

"You are nothing but contradictions, you know," Gwen told Klaus with her arms crossed over her chest, scowling at the Original hybrid. She was a bit hurt by his words, even though there was no reason for her to believe that he perceived her as such. "Human life is nothing but a means to an end?" she huffed. "You do remember that I am mortal. Am I a means to an end?"

Klaus narrowed his eyes. "Now, don't go twisting my words, Tiny Temper." He walked toward Gwen and stood in front of her, meeting her stony eyes with his own soft ones. "I raised you since you were practically born. You have filled my days with…purpose and I abhor the very thought of having to watch you fade from my life as the years go by, knowing that I can't do anything to stop it." When he saw the halfling's scowl change into a grin, he huffed with a roll of his eyes. "You just wanted me to get all sentimental."

Gwen chuckled halfheartedly. "I just like hearing you get all mushy." While she was joking, it did pain her to know that she would age and die, leaving Klaus alone. And that was something that frightened her, but she always tried to focus on staying positive and enjoying the time she had with him.

"I was being honest, though," he reassured her as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders and led her up the staircase.

"I know," she told him, leaning her head against his shoulder.

Just then, Klaus' phone rang as the pair began to make their way up the stairs. "Now who could that be?" the older hybrid mumbled to himself as he took his phone out of the pocket inside his jacket. He frowned when at the caller ID.

Gwen noticed the intensity in Klaus' eyes as he stared down at his phone. "Who is it?" she asked, wondering who would be calling him that caused such a sour look to appear on his face.

"Rebekah," Klaus breathed.

.

It was not a good day, not for one Damon Salvatore.

In one day, Damon had to deal with the fact that Klaus moved into town in a more permanent sense, which was already a damper in his existence, since he would have to live with constantly looking over his shoulder, even in his own home. He also found out that said Original hybrid was tormenting Elena and her brother, almost getting Jeremy killed and most certainly killing Alaric for a few hours. And to put a cherry on top of the icing, there were hybrids crawling all over the town, ready to pounce on anyone with one word from Klaus.

All of this was thanks to one Stefan Salvatore.

If there was something Damon hated more than his plan to kill Klaus having ended up in an epic failure, it was the mystery that was his younger brother and everything he did ever since he turned off his humanity. But what really took the cake for Damon was that Stefan saved Klaus with the intention of saving his older brother, which made him question everything about his younger brother. One moment, Stefan was all for killing Klaus, no matter the consequences, which was thanks to his humanity being off. In the next moment, the youngest Salvatore saved Klaus, thus destroying any chance of getting rid of the Original hybrid. And then, Stefan steals Klaus' family with no regard as to what happens to anyone else. All of this had Damon questioning if his brother's humanity was either on or off.

It was safe to say that Damon was _not_ in a good mood, having no patience at all to deal with Stefan and his antics, which was why he thought he could leave his younger brother with a branch embedded in his abdomen as payback and that would be that. Yet, something at the back of his head nagged at him to go back to the home of the dead witches instead of following Elena back into town, so he spent a lot of time debating with himself on what to do while walking around the forest that surrounded the old dilapidated house, weighing his options as to what to do with his younger brother, since he was the cause of the problems they were all having with Klaus.

Damon cursed himself when he found that his feet had decided for him by taking him to his younger brother's newest hideout just as it became nighttime overhead.

"You know what I can't figure out?" Damon asked as he walked toward the forsaken house he was not welcomed in, his eyes locked on Stefan's figure that leaned against a pillar near the front entrance of the old lodge. "Why save me?" he prodded his indifferent brother. "Brotherly love? Guilty conscience? Is the switch on, is the switch off?"

"Don't you have somewhere you need to be, Damon?" Stefan asked in return, exhaling heavily.

"Ah," Damon chuckled. "Deflection." He shrugged his shoulders as he came to a stop next to a thin tree some feet away from Stefan, leaning against it. "That's not gonna work on me. I invented that."

"We're done." Stefan pushed himself off the pillar with his hands stuffed in the pockets of his jacket. He was getting annoyed with the number of visitors he was receiving in one day, which had him worrying if Klaus would be the next one to pay him a visit. "Can't you just go away?"

Damon hummed and shook his head. "Not until you answer my questions. You owe me that."

Stefan scoffed while smirking as he took a few steps toward Damon. "I don't owe you anything."

"Fine," Damon sighed. "Next question. Why did you steal the coffins?"

"His greatest weakness is Gwen, so I thought that she would have been the better option to use to destroy Klaus," Stefan began to explain. "The problem was that there were too many hybrids guarding her, so that was a no-go. His family is also a weakness, so they are a good substitute to use against him."

"Use against him to do what?" Damon asked, frowning. "You're not going to kill him. You know how I know?" he mocked Stefan. "'Cause there was only one way to kill him, and you blew that to save me."

"You're wrong, Damon." Stefan shook his head at his brother as he approached him. "Klaus doesn't just get to live forever. There's another way. _There has to be_." If there wasn't, then Stefan would have nothing to help him walk forward and wake up day after day.

"Fair enough." Damon nodded, now being able to understand Stefan a bit better. This was all about revenge and focusing on the one thing that gave him meaning without the guilt and emotions weighing him down to the ground, something the older Salvatore was familiar with. "But whatever you're doing, I want in."

"I don't need your help," Stefan said and began to make his way back to the old house.

"Really?" Damon called out, getting Stefan to stop and look at him. "As it is, you're hiding out in a haunted house."

Stefan shrugged. "I'm in this alone, Damon."

"If you go after Klaus, you're going to have to be cutthroat and devious. Clearly, I'm so much better at that than you," Damon argued. He pushed away from his leaning position and stood in front of Stefan. "Come on, brother. What do you say?" A lopsided smirk appeared on his lips. "If you're gonna keep saving my life, at least make it for a good reason."

Looking at Damon in the eyes, Stefan had to admit that having his brother on his side would help him in his plan to destroy Klaus instead of toughing it out on his own without a clear plan. "You want in, huh?"

Damon nodded without hesitation, saying, "Yeah."

"Okay," Stefan agreed. "But it's just me and you. Elena stays out of it."

"Deal," Damon said without hesitation, preferring not to involve her in any more danger.

"Follow me," Stefan said before making his way into the abandoned house.

"Wait." Damon paused as he frowned at the house that wasn't very fond of him, and for good reason. Staring at the building in the dark of night had the oldest Salvatore feeling even more creeped out with the place, especially when he thought he could hear the whispering of the witches cursing his name. "I'm not so welcome in there."

"Don't you worry, Damon. We all want the same thing," Stefan threw at his brother over his shoulder as he stepped inside the dead witch's house.

Damon released a deep sigh and followed Stefan, relieved to find that there was no attack on his person. Stefan led them to the basement that had what appeared to be an empty space, which was where the youngest Salvatore found himself spending most of his time in after the Homecoming Dance debacle.

"Have a look," Stefan told Damon as he nodded at the empty space of the basement.

Taking a quick look around, Damon found nothing special or out of the ordinary, which had him questioning his allegiance to his brother. "What?" he asked as he looked at Stefan. "Klaus is allergic to dust?"

Stefan grinned at Damon before looking forward at the space in front of him. "Look again."

With a roll of his eyes, Damon looked back at what had been nothing but an empty basement with old furniture lying around a mere few seconds ago. His eyes widened when he saw that four coffins occupied the space in front of him. Indistinct and disembodied whispering reached Damon's ears, which told him that the coffins appearing out of thin air was the dead witches' doing.

"Witch spirits hate Klaus as much as we do," Stefan explained, repeating what Bonnie had told him earlier in the day when she procured for him a way to hide Klaus' family by asking the spirits of the dead witches for help. "They're using their powers to hide the coffins."

Damon hummed with pursed lips, impressed. "So even if he comes in the house…"

"He won't be able to find them," Stefan finished for his brother.

Damon found that his day had just gotten better.

.

Frustration was all that one Klaus Mikaelson felt.

Having parked his car at the driveway of the Salvatore Boarding House, Klaus took a deep breath as he tried to calm the headache that was beginning to form in the back of his head, which was caused by his current situation. "I can't believe I agreed to this," the Original hybrid sighed heavily as he fell against his seat with closed eyes.

Gwen looked at him from her spot on the passenger's seat, rolling her eyes at Klaus' complaining. "I wasn't going to just sit back when Bekah could be in trouble."

After Klaus found out that the call he received from his sister's phone was made by Elena to contact him with the intention to make a deal with him, he entered into an argument with Gwen when he told her to stay behind while he went to meet with the doppelgänger. The halfling was determined to accompany him, since she was very worried about Rebekah. She had fallen unconscious before she could see what happened to the only female Original. The last time she saw Rebekah, the Original vampire was when they got into a struggle with the doppelgänger and the oldest Salvatore brother. Gwen was angry and worried, which was why she couldn't stand to do nothing when Rebekah could be in trouble, no matter that she had been drugged by said Original.

"Didn't you say that she drugged you?" Klaus asked with a raised eyebrow after he opened his eyes to stare at Gwen. "I'll need to address that with her."

"She drugged me, so I'll be the one addressing her," Gwen countered. "Come on." She opened her door and stepped out of the car, being careful of her tender wound. "You wasted enough time back at the mansion trying to get me to stay behind." She closed the door just when he opened his mouth to respond.

"I knew Rebekah would be a bad influence," Klaus mumbled to himself as he stepped out of the car, closing the door before joining Gwen as she walked to the front door of the boarding house. "It's as if she's transitioning into a mini version of Rebekah," he continued to speak to himself under his breath.

Frowning when her ears caught Klaus grumbling, Gwen looked up at him when he stood beside her. "Did you say something?"

"No, no," Klaus quickly replied with a shake of his head. "Just talking to myself."

Gwen raised an eyebrow at Klaus but opted to ignore him for the time being, wanting to focus on finding Rebekah. She reached up to grab the door knocker and slammed it on the door a few times, hearing the sound echo within the house. They didn't have to wait long, since the door was opened within a minute after Gwen knocked on it by Elena, whose eyes slightly widened in surprise at seeing the halfling standing right in front of her.

"Thank you for coming," the doppelgänger greeted the two hybrids who walked past her to step inside the home.

"You said you had no news of Stefan but know of my sister's whereabouts," Klaus stated, recalling his earlier conversation with Elena.

"Where is she?" Gwen asked the doppelgänger with narrowed eyes, crossing her arms over her chest.

Elena cleared her throat as she closed the front door before turning to face the Original and half-fae staring at her with frowning eyes. "Follow me," she sighed before leading the way to the cellar of the boarding house with Klaus and Gwen trailing behind her, both keeping their guard up. "She's in here," Elena said when she stopped in front of one of the doors of a cell before pushing it open.

Both Klaus and Gwen frowned at Rebekah's gray body clad in a red dress lying face down on the dirty floor with a dagger in her back and only a thin blanket to cover her body from the waist down. The sight of his sister being daggered in such conditions by someone who wasn't him angered Klaus, a sentiment that Gwen also felt as she shifted her furious gaze from Rebekah's prone body to Elena who stood next to the incapacitated Original.

"My poor sister," Klaus sighed from where he stood at the doorway, staring down at his youngest sibling. "I can't turn my back on her for a moment."

"Did _you_ dagger her?" Gwen spat at Elena, her hands clenching at her sides as she focused on keeping her anger in check.

Elena glanced at Rebekah for a moment, feeling only a small amount of guilt that she pushed away. "I had no choice," she began to explain as she met Gwen's steely gaze. "I couldn't trust that she wouldn't betray us, so I did what I had to–"

"It still gives you no right to use people like that," the halfling hissed, glaring at the taller brunette. Gwen was so angry. She cared about Rebekah very much, so it infuriated her that she was hurt and betrayed by people she tried to help. "You used her and then disposed of her like she was nothing," she scoffed at Elena, shaking her head. She raised her hand with her open palm facing up. "Give me her phone."

Elena reached into her pants' back pocket with her right hand and took out Rebekah's phone before handing it over to Gwen. "I did what I had to do to keep the people I care about safe," she said to the scowling halfling.

"No, you did a horrible thing," Gwen argued. "Don't try to apologize and justify what you did when you really don't care."

"Come now, Lyn," Klaus exhaled while crouching beside his sister's body, his mind going over what his next move should be, since he had to take into account that his sister knew he was the one who killed their mother. He grasped the dagger embedded in Rebekah's back and pulled it out, since it was in an uncomfortable spot. "I believe she's learned her lesson."

"Look, you have Rebekah," Elena said, turning her attention to Klaus. "A deal is a deal."

"Yes, my sister in exchange for your brother's life," Klaus muttered, remembering what she had asked of him should she give him Rebekah. "I'd say that's a bargain, so consider him spared."

"I daggered her, so she'll come after me when she wakes up," Elena told the Original hybrid.

"I'll handle Rebekah," Klaus said before he heaved himself to his feet, handing over the dagger to Gwen.

While it appeared to be a small knife that wasn't too sharp, Gwen could feel the darkness that surrounded the dagger as she stared at it, which sent an unpleasant chill down her spine that shook her body. The silver dagger was simple in its design and appeared to be delicate, so she handled it with care. Still, it frightened her for a reason she couldn't really understand, wanting to have nothing to do with it. It was as if her mind, body, and soul were being burned by her touching it. She could tell that it had caused great amount of pain. How could it not when its purpose was to subdue someone to make them experience something close to death by being embedded in their heart. It truly was a dark and cruel instrument, which reminded the halfling that there were other people with similar daggers in their hearts, and that was something she thought she'd need to talk to Klaus about.

"I do still need your help finding Stefan," Klaus told Elena, his voice bringing Gwen out of her mind and back to reality.

"I told you," Elena began with a huff as she folded her arms over her chest, looking away from Klaus' penetrating gaze. "I don't know where he is."

Klaus smirked as he approached Elena with a knowing look. "You're lying. Fortunately, you have no shortage of loved ones." He glanced at Rebekah before giving the doppelgänger a stony look. "if I don't find my family, the question you should be asking yourself is who's gonna die next. Bonnie? Caroline?" He grinned for a moment and added, "Maybe Damon?" He shrugged. "It's only a matter of time before Stefan gives me what I want."

Elena scoffed. "He doesn't care about me anymore. _You_ made sure of that."

"All evidence to the contrary, love," Klaus countered, causing Elena to frown. "You don't think he saved me because he wanted to rekindle our friendship, do you?" When he was met with silence, he chuckled. "You see, Stefan may be playing like he doesn't care, but he does. When push comes to shove, he'll do whatever he must to protect the ones he loves. It's something he and I have in common, something I actually admire." He then added, almost growling at Elena's face, "Do pass on the message that I will burn this town to the ground if my family continues to be used as hostages. I am exercising a lot of patience, so tell Stefan not to take advantage of it just because I am entertaining his dramatics in favor of looking after Gwen."

Resisting the urge to roll her eyes, Elena scoffed at Klaus, "Well, I fail to see how he still cares about anyone. Getting into a conflict with you endangers everyone I love and care about who were also his friends, and he's aware of that."

"Whatever helps you sleep at night," Klaus said, staring down at his sister's body.

Finding that there wasn't anything else that she could say to get Klaus to understand that Stefan was acting on his own without caring about the consequences of his actions, Elena left the cell.

Gwen looked at Klaus. "Do you really think she knows where Stefan is?"

"She does," Klaus sighed as he knelt beside Rebekah and proceeded to carefully turn her body to face upward. "One of the perks of having enhanced senses is that it allows me to hear her heartbeat." He gives Gwen a smirk. "She's worse than you when it comes to lying, and that's saying much, considering that you can't lie."

"Funny," Gwen deadpanned. "Aren't you going to try and get Stefan's location out of her?"

Klaus took Rebekah in his arms and stood up, adjusting his sister's body so that her head rested against his shoulder. "In the spirit of a bargain well struck where my sister has been returned to me, I will stave off any violent actions against them." He began to lead them out of the cellar and added while grinning, "Until tomorrow. While this little game of Stefan's has been quite intriguing, I don't plan on letting him keep the rest of my family for much longer."

"Says the guy who can't find him," mumbled Gwen.

"What?" Klaus asked as he looked at her over his shoulder, eyebrow raised in question.

"Nothing," Gwen replied before an idea popped in her mind. "You know, I can try finding him. My magic may be elemental in nature, but June's taught me how to manipulate it in a way that can lead us to where the rest of your family is."

Klaus pursed his lips as he thought over her suggestion, going up the stairs that led out of the cellar. "We can try it, but only after your wound has healed."

After everything was settled and Rebekah was placed in the back of Klaus' car, the two hybrids then made their way back to the mansion. Gwen had given Klaus the silver dagger that he put away in a pocket inside his jacket, preferring not to have it in her possession longer than necessary, not when it caused her to feel such foreboding. She spent the car ride keeping an eye on Rebekah the whole way back to her new home, eager to see her friend wake up so that they could talk…probably after the blonde either talks or tries to kill Klaus.

Once they arrived at the mansion, Gwen left Klaus to carry Rebekah into the house while she hurried to get the empty bedroom next to her own ready for the unconscious Original to occupy it, wanting the blonde to be in a comfortable place for when she woke up from her death-like slumber. After she finished setting up the bed in the bare room, the halfling left to find out where Klaus was and where he had placed Rebekah's body.

Gwen frowned when she found that Klaus was in one of the last rooms that have yet to be finished being renovated, disliking the melancholy she saw reflected in his eyes as she stared at him from her spot at the doorway. He stood next to a table where Rebekah's immobile body was lying on, leaning over his sister's body with a hand stroking her blonde locks.

"I'm so sorry, sister," Klaus whispered to Rebekah as he stroked her dry and gray cheek.

Although he was always the one who daggered her, Klaus loathed seeing Rebekah in such a state, but he had no other option but to keep her as she was or risk losing her. His eyes watered at the thought of his sister hating him and leaving his side, something he couldn't fault her for, given that it was all his doing. And yet, a tight grip of fear surrounded his heart as he imagined Rebekah waking up and turning his nightmare of being left alone into a reality by revealing the truth to the rest of his family.

These thoughts motivated him for what he had to do next.

Klaus grasped his sister's neck with his left hand as he reached into his jacket with his right. "We'll meet again one day," he sighed as he pulled out the silver dagger he had bathed in the ash of white oak a few moments ago before plunging it into Rebekah's heart once more, causing more protruded veins that had previously receded to return and decorate her gray skin.

"What are you doing?" Gwen almost screeched as she raced over to Klaus' side, staring down at the dagger in Rebekah's chest before scowling up at him while ignoring how misty his eyes looked. "Nik!" she pressed him when he failed to answer her. She scoffed and reached for the dagger, ready to pull it out, but she was stopped when Klaus' larger hand grasped her wrist and pulled it back. "Let go!" She snatched her hand back as she glared up at the older hybrid who stared at her with empty eyes.

"Rebekah stays as she is," Klaus told Gwen, the coldness in his voice causing her to take a step back.

"Why?" Gwen exhaled. "Hasn't she been like this enough?"

"The last thing I need to deal with right now is an angry sister throwing a tantrum, which can very well thwart any plan I come up with to acquire my brothers," Klaus argued, not at all in the mood to argue with Gwen.

"What about after you get the coffins back?" she asked in return. "Will you wake her then?" At the silence she received as a response, Gwen stared at Klaus in disbelief when she realized he already had a reason to keep Rebekah daggered. "You can't seriously be thinking of keeping her like that just because she knows about you killing your mother. It's not right, Nik," she shot at him, wishing he would deny her claims. "And that also goes for the rest of your family. You can't just decide when it's fitting to wake them."

The Original hybrid's lips quirked up into a mocking grin. "I have been doing just that for the past thousand years without much problem. I fail to see why now it's any different."

Gwen's eyes filled with water, wanting nothing more than to scream or hit something as the stress swirling within her body almost took over her body, but she managed to calm her raging heart and mind. "I _hate_ this side of yours," she whispered as she shook her head.

Klaus said nothing as Gwen gave him her back before she stalked out of the room, leaving him alone. Suddenly, he found himself terrified as he watched the young halfling disappear from his line of sight with only silence for company.

* * *

**End of chapter!**

**I hope you guys enjoyed the new chapter. It was a bit difficult to write, since I am eager to get to when the other Originals are undaggered, but I remind myself to keep it cool and not rush things. There are a few things to address and reveal in the next few chapters, especially in the next one, so stay tuned.**

**Also, leave a review and tell me how it's going. Have no fear of your thoughts, each and every single opinion is welcomed and I'll take whatever you guys can give me. It helps me to write and provide a satisfactory story foor you all to enjoy.**

**I thank you all for the Faves and Follows. It amazes me how many people are hooked on this story, so thank you all so very much!**

**See you in the next chapter!**


	18. there goes the neighborhood

**Hello, all! Here is yet another chapter for you all to enjoy. I have to warn you guys that this chapter was hard to write for a reason, since there will be quite a few changes that you might or might not like. Still, there are revelations that are very important, so I hope you guys enjoy the chapter!**

**Also, I just want to thank you guys so much! This story reached over 20,000 views and it's all thanks to you! Lots of love for you all!**

**Now, for those amazing reviews:**

**-_jayanimukta_: Well, we already talked and I appreciate your opinion, so no harm done. I'll stay true to this story and where I want to take it, so I hope you stick to the story until the very end!**

**-_xenocanaan_: You are very much welcome and I hope you enjoy this next one! I know that I've been saying that I'll deviate from the story soon, but I will. It's just that it's a slow process to help the story grow naturally. Also, this is me being curious, what do you mean about deviating, especially concerning the Salvatore brothers? I already have _some_ possible plans for them, but I am interested to know.**

**-_Guest_: I am happy to report that I have finally reached the reunion between Gwen and Rebekah, but it's a struggle, so I hope you like how they'll move forward when I finally publish that chapter. As for Klaus and Gwen, well, you'll have to read and find out. Also, the dinner party has already been written! Stay tuned for that! It was a struggle, but I am satisfied with it.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing from The Vampire Diaries and claim no ownership over anything pertaining to it.**

* * *

_there goes the neighborhood_

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.

.

The sweet aroma of French toast filled the air of the spacious kitchen of the mansion Klaus now occupied and shared with Gwen and a few hybrids.

Gwen placed two slices of the sweetened bread on a plate before working on two sunny-side-up eggs and three strips of bacon before she arranged the items to her liking; each egg was placed on top of a French toast with the bacon on the side. As a finishing touch, the half-fae poured syrup around the toast and served herself some freshly squeezed orange juice before taking a seat on a stool at the kitchen island with her breakfast. She dug into her food and sighed with satisfied pleasure, since she had gone to bed the night before without eating dinner, preferring not to cross paths with Klaus when tensions were still high.

It had been difficult for Gwen to fall asleep the previous night, mostly because her argument with Klaus concerning Rebekah had been on repeat in her brain throughout the night. It made her so angry how Klaus was able to keep his sister daggered when his reasons for keeping his family in a death-like sleep were nonexistent. Gwen wanted to understand him, and she did, but only up to a point. She knew he was afraid of being alone or abandoned, so he prefers to carry his family around in boxes because it gave him a sense of security, especially when Mikael was hunting them down with the truth concerning the death of his wife and mother of his children. Yet, Mikael was dead and no longer a threat, so there was no need to keep his family daggered. Then again, a lot more people know what Klaus did, so she imagined that Klaus wouldn't want to wake any of his siblings for fear that they might learn the truth and abandon him. And knowing Klaus as well as she did, she knew he would first work on eliminating any trace of what he did to his mother before waking his family.

One of Klaus' hybrids walked by the kitchen doorway, breaking Gwen away from her thoughts.

Adding to her frustrations toward the Original hybrid, Gwen also felt uncomfortable sharing a home with people she had never met before, who also happened to be hybrids. It didn't help that the hybrids walked around with vacant gazes. Juniper had once explained to her that it was a rare thing that happened among vampires, so Gwen was surprised to see that every single hybrid so far was afflicted with what Juniper called _sire bond_. She made a mental note to ask her friend about it later.

"Good morning," Klaus greeted as he entered the kitchen with a glass full of blood in one hand, his lips quirked up in a small grin.

Gwen's response was a mere glance before going back to her breakfast, something that irked Klaus, since he disliked it whenever she was upset with him. He knew that her foul mood would last until he changed his mind about keeping Rebekah daggered, so he needed to figure out a way to placate her anger in some other way. Of course, that was easier said than done. He found himself reminiscing about years past, when it was so much easier to handle Gwen she was a small child and only needed a nice piece of dessert to get her in a good mood. He groaned when all he could hear was Juniper's voice singing in his mind, warning him about the consequences of always trying to shield Gwen from everything, how he'd have to deal with a very rebellious teenager when she would grow tired of being passive with him.

"Where's Bekah?" asked Gwen, breaking the silence between them.

"Safely stored away," he answered after clearing his throat.

Gwen hummed with a nod of her head, munching on a piece of bacon.

"Any plans for today?" asked Klaus, approaching Gwen with slow and careful steps.

After gulping down a mouth full of food, Gwen said, "I don't know. Can I have plans?" She looked up at him as she shrugged her shoulders, her eyes lacking the warmth Klaus was used to seeing in them. "Or will I return to being the bird in a gilded cage?" As the words left her, she felt a pang of guilt when she saw the hurt in his eyes. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to say that."

Klaus took a deep and calming breath, understanding where Gwen was coming from. He knew that he deserved her stinging words. He hated that he had only given her a sheltered life, but he couldn't risk her safety. He also hated himself for daggering his siblings but blaming them was much easier on his conscience. "I deserved that," he told her, exhaling as he looked down at the red liquid that he swirled in his glass. "I deserve a lot of things, so don't apologize for being honest. I want you to know that I only ever want for you to remain safe."

"So that I stay ignorant?" Gwen argued as she turned to him, having finished eating her breakfast. She noticed the distress in Klaus' gaze, so she sighed. "Nik," she began. "I've known you my entire life, but you've kept me in the dark about important things, like how you keep your families in coffins. I didn't even know that you had a family all this time. And I know perfectly well why you've done this." He looked up at her with furrowed brows, so she elaborated. "You don't want to lose me, but this isn't the way to do that, just like keeping your family with daggers in their hearts isn't the right thing to do just because you're afraid that they'll abandon you."

Taking a deep breath, Klaus took a moment to gather his thoughts. He felt so bare. He was oftentimes annoyed with how well she could read him and his emotions, as if he were one of her favorite books that she knows from cover to cover.

"I won't condemn you for your actions," Gwen assured him. "But I won't overlook them. I will defend you against the world, but don't expect me to stay silent when we're behind closed doors."

When he was about to respond to Gwen's remark, Klaus paused when his senses picked up a presence in the room. By the scent, the Original hybrid already knew who tha stranger intruding in his home was, which only served to dampen his day. "I'm surprised you're still in town," he said out loud and turned away from Gwen, his eyes landing on Stefan, who was leaning against one of the kitchen's doorframes.

Gwen frowned as she followed the older hybrid's line of sight by looking around him. Her eyes widened when they settled on a grinning Stefan. She hopped off the stool to stand beside Klaus. "Stefan?"

"I gave you your freedom," Klaus sighed as he took a step to slightly hide Gwen behind him. "You could have gone anywhere, yet you have quite the nerve to show up here in my home."

"I live here, Klaus. This town is my home," Stefan argued, shrugging the shoulder he wasn't leaning on.

"Well, if we're playing this game, then I was here first," Klaus shot back in return, smirking at Stefan.

"You know," Stefan hummed as he pushed away from the doorframe to approach Klaus, "I don't like your hybrid friends. They're everywhere, kind of like fleas. I want them gone."

"Yeah, well, I kind of like having them around," said Klaus, his eyes narrowing on Stefan. "Especially for when I have a loved one in the hospital and there seems to be a snake slithering about."

Raising an eyebrow in question, Gwen looked up at Klaus. "What?" She then glanced at Stefan.

"Oh, it's nothing to worry about. Stefan almost did something very, _very_ stupid," Klaus told Gwen before directing his attention to the vampire, whose composure seemed to falter for a moment. "Come now, you didn't think that you got away because of your own skills and smarts, right?"

Stefan maintained the grin on his face, his eyes still locked with Klaus'.

"You know, I'm hurt," Klaus said, faking the hurt tone of his voice. "I hoped that when I freed you, we'd pick up where we left off, but here you are, guzzling vervain like the rest of them, I'm sure." And his guess was correct, since he picked up on the potent scent of the well-known plant that was poison to vampires coming from Stefan. "So much for friendship," he huffed before taking a sip of the blood in his glass, keeping his eyes trained on Stefan for any sudden movement.

"Friends don't strip friends of their free will," Stefan retorted.

Gwen hummed with a small nod of her head. "He has a point."

"Okay, granted, that was a little extreme," Klaus agreed with both Gwen and Stefan.

"A _little_?" Gwen deadpanned.

"You know I tend to get a little moody from time to time," Klaus defended himself to Gwen before looking back at Stefan. "Just ask any of my siblings. Speaking of whom, isn't it time you handed them over?"

"Klaus," Stefan began as he took another step closer to Klaus, squaring up to the older immortal. "Get your hybrids out of Mystic Falls or I will remove them myself."

Klaus growled through an exhale, his blood beginning to boil. "You see, if you continue to threaten me, I'm going to be forced to retaliate. Kill people, and it'll get messier than the whole Jeremy situation."

"Do whatever you want, I don't really care." Stefan's grin widened as an idea occurred to him. "Or maybe I do. Maybe I care so much that I'll drop Elijah in the Arctic."

Gwen made a face at the threat. "That's just stupid."

"I have to agree with her, Stefan," said Klaus. "While my brother won't die and I have all the time in the world to find him, yours isn't as durable and neither is anyone else that you say you no longer care about." He took another sip of his drink. "Now, go get my family or I will start painting your house red with the blood of everyone you _used_ to love, starting with your brother. I'll be generous and give you until midnight to have your fun but do mind the clock when it strikes midnight."

Stefan's grin fell a bit, but he continued to glare at Klaus, his eyes never straying from the Original hybrid's much more relaxed face.

Just then, Mindy stepped into the room from behind Stefan, eyeing the vampire with wary eyes. She noticed the tense atmosphere surrounding both Klaus and Stefan as they glared at each other with smirks on their faces. "Is everything okay?" she asked Klaus as she focused on Stefan, perceiving him as a threat against Klaus.

"Everything's fine, Mindy," Klaus assured the female werewolf-vampire hybrid. "Stefan was just leaving to once again do as I ask."

What happened next was something Gwen would have never seen coming. She didn't even notice that she screamed or that drops of blood had sprayed on her face as her hands grasped Klaus' arm in a tight grip, her eyes trained on the werewolf-turned-hybrid's headless body that fell to the floor with a loud thud. Mindy's head was lying on another corner of the room due to the force Stefan used to decapitate her with a kitchen knife he had picked up from a wood block in a mere blink of an eye. The half-fae's heart practically stopped as all air left her. She had seen other people get killed in front of her before, but she was so surprised and unprepared this time that she was left in shock.

"Well, one down," Stefan breathed as he dropped the kitchen knife on the island's counter, giving Klaus a triumphant smirk. "You may want to send the rest of them away before it gets messier. Feel free to retaliate in any way you want."

Klaus scowled as he watched Stefan take his leave, tempted to go after the vampire and break his neck, but he was able to control this urge. He didn't know where Stefan was keeping his family and he wasn't going to risk their safety. While he didn't know how far Stefan was willing to take his game, Klaus didn't want word to leak that he was no longer in possession of his siblings who were very daggered and very vulnerable to other enemies he'd rather continue to keep at arm's length.

.

"And you're sure you can't find them?" Gwen asked as she paced around her room that had a bohemian style to it in how it was decorated, having taken a bath to wash away Mindy's blood from her skin and hair.

"_Sorry, doll_," Juniper sighed in response. "_I've tried a few more times, but I am blocked by an impenetrable wall. Wherever those coffins are, someone is using a huge amount of concentrated magic_."

"But they're still in Mystic Falls?" Gwen asked into her phone that she held to her ear.

Juniper hummed. "_They are. I did a locater spell with Klaus' blood on a map and it stops before it gets to Mystic Falls, but it does nothing when I tried it on a map of the town_," she explained. "_If they were anywhere else or split up, the blood would have moved in their direction at least. While I can't give you an exact location, I can assure you that his family is still there and together_."

"And you can't track Stefan somehow?" Gwen wondered as she sat on the foot of her bed.

"_I could, but I don't have anything that belongs to him for me to use to connect with him_," Juniper replied. "_Besides, if he's hiding away in the same place the coffins are or he's also being protected by said spell, then there's no point._"

"Is a witch strong enough to keep even you from eavesdropping?" Gwen teased.

Releasing a fake laugh, Juniper said, "_Unlike Klaus, I don't claim to be all-powerful. I do have my limits._" She paused for a moment as a thought came to her. "_But the amount of magic I felt pushing me back can't be coming from one witch._"

Frowning due to curiosity, Gwen asked, "You sense more than one?"

"_There's more than one witch's essence, so I'm pretty sure it's multiple people performing an advanced cloaking spell_," said Juniper.

"But there's only one witch in town," argued Gwen. "That I know of."

"_Okay, so that narrows down possibilities,_" Juniper mumbled as she hummed pensively. "_If there are no other witches in town but one, then it has to be a place where there's a high concentration of magic. These places filled with magic can be created from many ways, like a sacrifice or a ritual. Also, if a significant number of witches were buried or murdered in the same place, their magic tethers them to this plane._"

Gwen raised an eyebrow at this. "So, dead witches?"

"_It's a possibility, which would mean that the Bennett witch is manipulating the magic left behind in that place to boost her own_," Juniper further explained.

"I'm sorry I'm being such a nuisance," Gwen apologized, feeling bad about asking so much of Juniper and inconveniencing her when she already had other things to deal with. "I just really want all of this to be over with so I can focus on being angry with Nik."

Juniper chuckled at this. "_What did he do now?_"

"He's keeping Bekah daggered," answered Gwen.

"_Why?_" Juniper asked, and Gwen could tell that the witch was frowning. "_You know, I'll never understand his need to put his family in caskets for such long periods of time. It's messed up._"

Clearing her throat, Gwen thought over what her next words should be. She concluded that a lot of people already knew, so there was no point in keeping it a secret anymore. "I'll tell you, but you have to swear that you won't breathe a word of this. Nik can't find out that I told you, understood?" She sighed as she prepared herself for what she was about to reveal and what Juniper's reaction was going to be. "I _will_ throw you under the bus if you tell on me."

"_Oh, come on. It can't be _that bad," said Juniper. "_I mean, it's Klaus we're talking about. His bar is pretty high on how terrible he can be_."

"June," Gwen pressed, needing the witch to promise.

"_Cross my heart and hope to die_," Juniper practically sang. "_Now, what did he do?_"

"So, Rebekah found out that Nik…kind of, um," Gwen began but paused. "He kind of…killed their mom."

"_Say what?_" Juniper asked in complete disbelief.

Gwen cleared her throat. "Nik killed his mom, not Mikael."

Juniper let out a hollow laugh. "_Can you repeat that one more time?_"

With a halfhearted glared directed at the wall and a roll of her eyes, Gwen said, "Nik killed his mother." It became silent for a moment, causing the halfling to frown and check if the call had been disconnected. "June, you still there?"

"_Holy shit!_" Juniper shrieked, which had Gwen pulling the phone away from her ear for a moment. "_Why did he do that?_" she continued to yell, but it wasn't as sharp as before. "_Wait, how did that happen?_" she asked, still processing Gwen's words. "_I have so many questions!_"

"Klaus!"

Gwen was startled by the loud voice, but she found that she recognized it as she continued to hear it call out for Klaus. "June, I'm gonna have to call you back," she told the still-shocked witch on the other end of the line. She stood up from the bed and began to make her way out of her room that she hadn't left since morning, having preferred to relax in solitude by taking a bath and drawing. "Someone's looking for Nik."

"_You can't just drop this bomb on me and hang up!_" Juniper retorted. "_I need details. This is huge!_"

"I'll call you later," Gwen said as she left her room, ignoring Juniper's protests and threats before hanging up the call.

The half-fae stepped out of her bedroom and looked down the empty hallway before making her way to the grand staircase, following the sound of two voices arguing. Gwen stood at the top of the stairs and looked down to find Tyler arguing with one of Klaus' hybrids who was around Tyler's age with a tall and athletic build, fair skin, straight brown hair and blue eyes. The blue-eyed hybrid had been left behind with the instruction to watch over her while he went to attend a Founder's meeting with the rest of his hybrids, intent on turning the town against Stefan to force the young vampire into a corner with no other choice but to admit defeat and return the coffins.

"What's going on?" Gwen asked, her voice echoing and gaining the attention of the two hybrids who turned their gazes up to stare at her.

Tyler stepped around the other werewolf-vampire hybrid to approach the stairs with desperation in his eyes. "I need to find Klaus," he began to explain with urgency. "Can you tell me where he is?"

"Klaus asked not to be disturbed until he returned," said the other hybrid.

Gwen walked down the stairs to talk to Tyler and glanced at the other hybrid whose name she didn't know. "You're…" she began but gave the unknown hybrid a pointed look.

"Dean," answered the hybrid as he came to stand beside Tyler.

"Right," Gwen sighed as she stopped at the last step of the staircase, giving her a few inches of height that helped her to be at least on the same level of both of the hybrids' faces. Her attention went to Tyler. "Why are you looking for Nik?" she asked him, her brows furrowing when she noticed the anguish that rolled off him in waves.

"Look, I need to talk to Klaus about getting some of his blood," Tyler answered her. "I need it fast."

Gwen frowned. "Why?"

Tyler struggled with voicing words he never thought that would ever leave his lips. He hated himself and felt nauseous with the remnants of his girlfriend's blood that still lingered in his mouth, blood he would have never thought he'd taste. "I bit Caroline." The words were like acid.

"Your girlfriend?" Gwen gasped, her eyebrows rising in surprise. She also noticed the look of shock on Dean's face. "Why on earth would you do that?"

"I don't know! I didn't even know I did it until after!" Tyler exclaimed, throwing his arms up in frustration before raking his fingers through his hair as he began to pace to try and expel the agitation that made his body crawl. He wished he could knock his own teeth out. "Klaus asked me to do it and I told him that I wouldn't, so he said that it was fine, and I thought that was it. I thought everything was fine, but then I bit her out of nowhere," he added before going back to stand in front of Gwen. "I need Klaus to heal her before it's too late. I don't know how long she has."

"Okay," Gwen exhaled, her anger toward Klaus growing. This sire bond business left a bad taste in her mouth. "Here's what we're going to do," she began as she placed a hand on Tyler's shoulder. "I need to get something from my room." She focused on expanding her aura to sooth his own. "You're going to take me to your girlfriend, and we'll have this sorted out."

A bit confused, Tyler found himself calming down as he stared into Gwen's eyes, noticing how her eyes appeared to glow a bit. "Wait, but we need Klaus' blood," he argued.

Gwen waved him off as she began to make her way back upstairs to change out of her loungewear and gather her things. "I got that covered, so don't worry. Wait for me outside while I go get what we need."

"Hey, wait," Dean spoke up, stopping Gwen when she was halfway up the stairs. "You can't just leave. Klaus ordered me to watch over you."

"So, come with us. You won't be going against his wishes as long as you're with me," Gwen retorted, disliking how fiercely–or blindly–loyal the hybrids were to Klaus. "Everybody wins." She then continued to climb up the stairs, leaving behind a speechless and unsure Dean.

Gwen went back to her room and closed the door behind her for some privacy. She proceeded to change out of her taupe leggings and burgundy sweater that she dropped on the bed before going into her walk-in closet in her underwear. She picked out a navy-blue midi dress that had a V-shaped neckline, cami straps, and a back cutout with a self-tie closure. She matched the dress with a pair of flat sandals that were camel in color and had a strappy design with an open toe and lace-up closure. She quickly picked out a tan jacket and slipped it on.

The halfling went into her bathroom where she spent a good amount of time gathering what she'd need. She came out with her long hair braided into a loose fishtail over her left shoulder and her purse dangling from her elbow as she wrapped a bandage around her right hand. Gwen quickly but carefully made her way back downstairs, given that the wound on her back was still a bit sore.

Stepping outside of the manor, she found that Dean was already in one of Klaus' SUVs in front of the mansion in the driver's seat with Tyler sitting in the backseat. Gwen made her way over to the car and got in. Dean pulled out of the large driveway and followed Tyler's directions to get to Caroline's home.

After calming down and having been reassured that Caroline wasn't going to die, Tyler sat on the center of the backseat to get a better look of Gwen who stared forward at the dark road being illuminated by the high beam headlights. "Why are you helping me?" he asked her, frowning. "I mean, you don't know me, and you don't owe me anything," he said but not unkindly. He was only stating a fact. "You're on Klaus' side and my friends want to kill him, so why intervene when he's trying to kill them?"

"Do you want me to let your girlfriend die?" Gwen glanced at him over her shoulder, her big eyes giving him an incredulous look. "Personally, I don't like death. It's permanent and people shouldn't skirt around it like it's a game, but I've lived around it for so long that I hate how I've grown used to it," she told him. She elaborated further as she turned her attention back to the road. "I can tell that hurting the one you love is eating you from the inside, and it's all because of something you can't control. I feel like I owe you this much for what Nik made you do by taking advantage of the sire bond."

Dean gave Gwen a confused frown as he asked, "Sire bond?"

Gwen glanced at Dean for a moment. "It's a thing that happens when you're turned, but we're not getting into that right now."

"Thank you for this," Tyler murmured as he intertwined his fingers. "You _can_ help her, right? I mean, I thought only Klaus' blood could heal werewolf venom."

"I have my ways," she said with a small smile on her lips. "Faeries aren't just a rare snack or a glorified sacrificial lamb."

Tyler nodded, accepting her vague explanation as an answer. "I don't know how I'll be able to repay you for this."

"I'm not Nik, so don't you worry about favors and whatnot," said Gwen. "That's his thing."

Since Mystic Falls was a rather small town, it didn't take long to reach their destination. Dean parked the car in front of the Forbes family's house, turning the engine off. The three hybrids exited the car and stepped onto the sidewalk with Gwen in between the two men.

"All right, let's go," Gwen said as she went to take a step forward with Dean right beside her as he looked around for any potential dangers.

"I can't," said Tyler, causing Gwen and Dean to turn to him with confused looks on their faces.

"What?" asked Gwen, taken aback. "Why?"

"I doubt I'll be welcome in there," Tyler explained, feeling nothing but shame as he stared up at Caroline's home, her comforting scent reaching his nostrils. He shook his head as the image of Caroline with a bite wound on her neck surfaced to the forefront of his mind. "I've already caused enough trouble. Me being there will only make things worse."

Gwen nodded, understanding his reasons. "Fine, but you should see her later and be there for her. You owe her that much."

Tyler sighed through his nose as he stared at the ground before disappearing in a blink of an eye. Gwen released a deep sigh and motioned for Dean to follow with a small jerk of her head. The pair stepped up to the lit porch and peered through the door's window before Gwen pressed the doorbell. They didn't have to wait long, because Matt appeared from another room, stopping in his tracks when he saw Gwen and Dean standing outside with the half-fae offering a small smile.

Taking a moment to debate on what to do, Matt took a deep breath and went to the front door, opening it as he gave both Gwen and Dean an impassive look. "What do you want?" he asked Gwen. He wanted to be cold or at least a bit harsh in how he spoke, but he found that he couldn't when the halfling leveled him with such a pleading gaze.

"Tyler told me what happened," Gwen answered, her grip on the strap of her purse tightening due to her nervousness. She really was a bit shy every now and then. "He asked for help, so here I am."

"Klaus made him hurt Caroline," Matt shot at her. "How do I know he didn't send you to finish the job?"

"You don't, but I only want to help," Gwen pleaded her case. "I can cure your friend, but only if you let me."

Matt didn't have many options. Any decision made could end with Caroline dying. While he was relieved that Tyler hadn't sent Klaus to help, he still didn't trust anyone affiliated with the Original hybrid. Then again, there was only one cure for a hybrid bite. If Gwen had the cure for Caroline, then there wasn't much else he could do but accept her help. He already lost his sister. He didn't want to lose anyone else. His friends were the only family he had left, since his mother was never there for him.

"You want something in return?" came the voice of Sheriff Forbes as she appeared behind Matt.

"Nik would, but I don't," said Gwen. "I swear, I really only want to help."

Liz considered the young girl, finding herself surprised that another young teenager like her daughter was involved in supernatural business. She couldn't find anything about Gwen that could threaten her daughter's life, her gut telling her that she had nothing to worry about concerning the young halfling. The other hybrid was another story. "_You_ can come in," Liz said to Gwen before her eyes went to Dean. She was a desperate mother, but she wasn't going to invite one of Klaus' hybrids into the home she shared with her daughter that served as their own fortress that protected them from unwelcomed monsters. "He stays outside."

Gwen nodded and went to step over the threshold.

Dean quickly grabbed a hold of Gwen's bicep and said, "Out of the question."

"Let go," Gwen demanded as she scowled up at Dean, trying and failing to pull her arm from his grip.

"Hey, man, take it easy," Matt told the anxious hybrid, frowning at the hand gripping Gwen's arm. "She's not in any danger."

"I have no way of knowing that," Dean countered.

"I'm going in there whether you like it or not," Gwen stated to Dean, locking eyes with him. "I am more than capable of forcing the issue."

"Klaus told me to keep you safe and I can't do that if I am not invited inside. If I can't guarantee your safety, then I can't let you go in there," Dean argued.

"We won't hurt her," said Liz.

"I'll stay outside with you," Matt offered, not wanting to waste more time that Caroline did not have.

Liz didn't like this at all. "Matt, don't."

"You'll have me as leverage in case anything happens to her. Sheriff Forbes can stay on your line of sight," Matt said to Dean as he stepped outside to stand near Dean. "I'm your insurance."

Gwen didn't wait for Dean to make up his mind, so she simply jerked her arm from his hold and stepped inside the home, leaving behind her hybrid bodyguard with Matt. She approached Liz and followed the sheriff to Caroline's room.

The halfling didn't know what she was expecting to find, since she had never witnessed the state of a vampire under the effects of a werewolf bite, but she thought that Caroline was going to look a lot worse when she reached the blonde's bedroom. She was expecting blood coming from Caroline's eyes or mouth and gray skin, but there was none of that. The young vampire did look sick with a sheen of perspiration coating her too-pale skin as she lied on her side on the bed with a thin blanket over her body and her right arm cushioning her head. Gwen could tell that Caroline was in a lot of pain with her eyes tightly closed and small moans escaping her.

"I'll leave you to it," Liz told Gwen before she went down the hall to be able to watch over Matt while also staying alert in case her daughter needed her.

Gwen lifted her hand and softly knocked on the door to announce her presence, which had Caroline inhaling a sharp breath and snapping her eyes open. The vampire's blue-green eyes quickly surveyed her room before they settled on the smiling hybrid. "Hi," Gwen greeted as she took another step further into the room.

Caroline fought to focus her bleary vision as her body burned up even more from the inside out. She was parched and could only think of blood as the only way to cool down, but she still had enough control to know that drinking blood would only make things worse. "What are _you_ doing here?" she asked with a stern gaze, her voice raspy.

"Tyler sent me to help," Gwen explained as she came to stand next to the bed.

"I wouldn't need help if he hadn't done this to me," Caroline huffed, looking away from Gwen.

"He didn't mean to," said Gwen, her eyes softening as she came to sit on the edge of the bed near Caroline's waist. "You have to understand that he has no control whatsoever of what he does or even thinks, not while he's sired to Nik. You all need to stop thinking that this is something he can resist so easily."

Caroline stayed silent at this, still hurt and angry that Tyler couldn't fight against his sire bond to Klaus, not even for her.

"You know, this is the first time I'm seeing Nik in his true element," Gwen sighed. "I mean, I've seen how he can be, but this is different."

"What, you never knew that he's a psycho?" scoffed Caroline, rolling her eyes.

"Not when I was a child. Back then, I only ever knew him as the man who always tried to make me smile and protected me from harm," Gwen said with a faraway gaze and a wistful smile on her lips. Breaking away from memories of her past, she blinked a few times to find Caroline staring at her. "As I grew, I came to understand what he was capable of. I am still getting to know more about this side of him that is nothing but cruel and merciless to those he labels as enemies, but there is good in him buried deep inside." She cleared her throat. "At the end of the day, he's only doing this to get his family back."

"By hurting others," Caroline stated.

"Not that it's your fault, but you and your friends aren't helping the situation by trying to kill him, which only makes Nik retaliate the only way he knows how," Gwen argued before her eyes went to the cards that stood on the nightstand beside the bed. "It's your birthday," she stated before her eyes fell on what she recognized as blood peeking out from beneath the blanket covering Caroline's left shoulder. She lifted her hand but paused as she looked at Caroline, asking for permission. The vampire read the question in the halfling's eyes and nodded. Gwen pulled back the blanket and grimaced when she saw the festering wound. "I can't believe this happened to you on your birthday of all days. If Nik would have known, he probably wouldn't have picked you to be the collateral damage of the day."

"That's comforting." Caroline huffed, her head swimming for a bit. "How old are you? Are you a billion like Klaus?"

Gwen chuckled at this, her hands playing with the hem of her jacket. "First of all, Nik is around a thousand years old, not a billion," she said in amusement. "And second, I'm sixteen. Unlike pureblood faeries, I'm a half-breed. I'm mortal, so I'll grow old and die like any other human, but you vampires have all the time in the world."

"_I_ don't," said Caroline. "I'm dying."

"You don't have to die," Gwen said as she placed her purse on her lap. "I can help you."

Caroline couldn't help but be confused by this, causing her brows to furrow. "Why would you help me?"

Gwen shrugged her shoulders. "It's bad enough that your boyfriend is in a master-slave relationship with Nik, but he also gave you a nice werewolf bite as a birthday gift, which Tyler regrets with every fiber of his being."

While she didn't have any type of relationship with Caroline, Gwen couldn't find it in herself to let the young vampire die when she had a way to save her. She didn't have that apathic bone in her that allowed Klaus and probably Rebekah make a different decision. She knew that it could all be for naught, since Klaus could kill her the very next day, but Gwen just couldn't do nothing when she saw how desperate and worried Tyler looked in his pursuit to save the girl he loved. She couldn't just turn him away; it wasn't in her.

"I am not particularly fond of you or your group for trying to kill Nik, but that doesn't mean I am okay with people dying," Gwen finished. "It's not who I am. Nik says I'm too kind and he's probably right." She reached into her bag and pulled out a small vial that stored a dark red liquid. She took Caroline's hand and placed the vial in it. "You need to drink this, all of it. It'll make you feel weird, but it'll get the job done," she said as she still gripped Caroline's hand, her eyes locked with the blonde's. "You'll be fine after you do, but only if you drink all of it. Consider this my gift to you." She stood up and adjusted her bag over her shoulder as she smiled down at the blonde. "Happy birthday, Caroline."

Gwen turned on her heel and left the room. When she was about to pass Liz, she explained to the sheriff the same instructions she gave to Caroline about drinking the entire vial before meeting Dean outside and taking her leave.

.

Control was something Klaus needed to have. It was that need for control that had him daggering his siblings and storing them in coffins, to put them to a death-like sleep whenever they gave him too much trouble or threatened to leave him. It was a vicious cycle, one that was the norm for his family for a thousand years. And now, he lost that control when he found that cornering Stefan into a corner was not the best route that he could've taken to get his family back. He was also without his hybrids, which was a downside, given that they served as the perfect disposable soldiers he could use in his dispute with Stefan. The young vampire knew one of his weaknesses and how to exploit it. The entire situation made his skin itch, hating not being able to have any control.

Klaus had to admit that he was impressed with the youngest Salvatore for threatening him with killing Elena and any way for him to make more hybrids. Having hybrids wasn't a priority, but he liked having the option.

When his ears picked up on the front door opening and closing, Klaus was reminded of the other person whom he was losing control over, which caused him enough worry to last him a lifetime. The longer Gwen stayed by his side while he was in the middle of what was considered his 'business', the more he regretted taking her along with him. He didn't have much choice in the matter, since she was becoming more outspoken and rebellious in wanting to explore the world and whatnot, so he thought that allowing her that while also keeping her close would satisfy her cravings for life outside the walls he constantly built around her. And while he always strived to give her anything and everything she desired, he was starting to think that her stay in Mystic Falls would have to come to an end sooner rather than later, disliking the potential danger she faced every day that could be lurking around every corner.

"Nik!" Gwen called out.

"In here!" Klaus replied from where he stood in front of the lit fireplace in the living room, his arms folded over his chest. The Original hybrid didn't have to wait long for the halfling to find him, sensing her enter the living room a few moments after he answered her call. "I hope you had a more productive night than I did," he greeted as he turned around to find her dropping her purse and jacket on a loveseat. He frowned when something in the air reached his nose, a scent that didn't sit right with him.

"It was interesting," Gwen hummed as she hid her hands behind her back, even though it would be pointless to keep him in the dark about what she did. Her eyes hardened while raising an eyebrow. "Tyler came by earlier, asking to see you because you had the brilliant plan to have him bite Caroline. On her birthday, no less."

Klaus' eyes widened a bit. "It was her birthday today?" He had not known that. He may be a monster, but he did have _some_ standards. He didn't like the notion of killing someone on the day that marked the day they were born, but he think it was quite poetic. "Oh, well, nothing to do now. I don't plan on giving Stefan anything else than sending my hybrids away. Caroline's life will just have to be the consequences of making me step down."

"Yeah, about that," Gwen began as she looked at her feet, not wanting to meet his intense gaze.

"You didn't." Klaus scowled as he approached Gwen. Now that he took a good sniff of the room, he quickly grabbed her right arm and pulled it out from behind her to stare down at the bandage neatly wrapped around her palm. "Honestly," he hissed as he dropped her arm. "What on earth were you thinking?"

Feeling like she was five years old again, Gwen refused to meet his eyes, knowing the judgment and anger that awaited her being reflected in them. "I couldn't let her die, not when I have the power to save her," she argued. "I owed Tyler that much after you made him sign his own girlfriend's death sentence."

"We've discussed this before!" Klaus bellowed. "You know how dangerous it could be if people were to find out that my blood isn't the only thing that can cure a werewolf bite. No matter what, this is something we agreed to never risk revealing to anyone, except for June, but she gets a pass."

"I know," she sighed as her left hand picked on the bandage wrapped around the wound on her right hand, working up the courage to lock eyes with Klaus. Sure enough, there was the anger in his eyes. "Look, I made sure not to tell anyone what it was. I also told Caroline to drink it all or it wouldn't work, so there won't be any left behind."

"You know better than to take such a gamble," Klaus huffed as he began to pace in front of the fireplace, already trying to come up with ways to keep secret one of Gwen's most important abilities. "What do you think would happen if word got out that your blood is capable of curing werewolf bites?" he questioned as he went to stand in front of her once more. "And by what Juniper has discovered in her research, your blood is capable of so much more than that."

"I know, Nik," Gwen exhaled, growing more and more frustrated by the lecture she had heard many times before.

"I don't think you do!" Klaus yelled at her, which was all it took for Gwen's bubbling frustration to manifest.

"Stop yelling at me! I get it, okay?" Gwen screamed at Klaus with a glare set on her features, the outburst surprising Klaus. "If you hadn't been such an ass to Tyler and had him bite the girl he loves, I wouldn't have had to help him! It's not in me to be like you and be okay with people dying!" She took a deep breath as water began to gather in her eyes due to how frustrated she felt from everything that had been going on. She just couldn't take the stress that finally caught up to her since she left the hospital. "I'm sorry, okay?" She turned and grabbed her purse and jacket to go back to her room.

Klaus sighed. "Gwen–"

"Lay off!" she yelled over her shoulder and left the room.

With his mouth hanging open in shock, Klaus watched Gwen stomp out of the living room. He continued to hear her hurried steps until she reached her room and slammed the door shut. He could feel the vibration the action caused, which told him how angry she truly was. He realized that he shouldn't have pushed her. It was bad enough that he wasn't there to keep her safe from Mikael, but he also made her feel bad for being who she was.

Klaus groaned, feeling like the day had been too long for his liking.

* * *

**End of chapter...**

**So...yeah, that happened. I know there are a lot of Klaroline fans out there, but things happened and one of the most memorable Klaroline scenes didn't make the cut in this story. I took advantage of the scene and instead used it to show you guys where Gwen is mentally and emotionally concerning everything that's happened and to also drop that bomb. I have no regrets, but I am sorry for disappointintg those who expected to see Klaroline in this story, which is probably not happening.**

**I am prepared for angry rants or loving comments, so don't hesitate to share your thoughts. I hope I didn't drove anyone away and are sticking around.**

**See you guys in the next chapter!**


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